Broken World, Broken Souls
by enigmaticwonder85
Summary: (AU V4) It's been six months since the Battle of Beacon. Team RWBY is scattered, mistrust between the kingdoms is at an all time high, and various enemies are looking to establish dominance. Can the newly reunited Blake and Yang find the rest of the group and slow down their foes, or has Cinder's plan left Remnant too shattered to save? (Status: On Hiatus)
1. The Cyborg and the Barkeep

Chapter 1  
"The Cyborg and the Barkeep"

* * *

Six months. That's how long it had been since that awful night. The night that Beacon fell nearly taking the city of Vale with it.

 _It's also how long it's taken to get this damn club running again_ Junior thought to himself.

Hei Xiong seriously hoped the grand opening the coming weekend would go off without a hitch. This was the second time in less than a year he had to rebuild his club. The first time was because of that crazy huntress. What should have been a fairly simple matter quickly went sideways due to her bad temper. Then there was the Vytal Festival incident. One moment everything is fine then suddenly shit hit the fan. Multiple incidents essentially led to a Grimm invasion. The chaos was unprecedented. Out of seemingly nowhere there were airships falling out of the sky and Atlas forces apparently turning on the civilian population. Somehow the city itself managed to stand, but the nearby Beacon Academy wasn't so lucky. Even now he wasn't sure what exactly had happened. Between the destruction of the CCTS, and the lockdown on the fallen districts leading to Beacon, the flow of information was minimal. The only people who seemed to have any idea what was going on were former students and the occasional hunter or huntress that came by. However many of them weren't talking. The few bits of info that did manage to come by were conflicting at best.

However, those were the least of the concerns for the man better known as Junior. If something else happened to his club he wouldn't exactly be able to refer to himself as a "legitimate businessman" for much longer. Not that he truly was one to begin with mind you. Sure he DID have legit dealings such as his club. However, the real money came from his status as an information broker and black market dealer. Services and men provided to the highest bidder. In the end, there was no loyalty in his motives. While Junior wasn't actually one of the so-called "bad guys" that didn't make him one of the "good guys" either. At the end of the day, Junior was just in business for himself. A man like him needed a business such as a bar or club. Without one what was he suppose to do? Open a stall in an outdoor market with a sign loudly proclaiming his side activities and services?

Junior however didn't get much more time to think about his current problems. As he was looking over the various invoices and bills for rebuilding his club he heard the front doors open. Without looking up from the table he simply said, "Sorry. Club is closed until the weekend. We've still got a few last things to do before we can officially open." A few seconds later a pair of brown boots came into view as he was looking down at the table. Before he could tell the owner of said boots to go away he heard a voice that stopped him in his tracks. "What about unofficially?" it asked. "This isn't exactly your main line of work after all."

Junior knew that voice. Granted it had an edge to it that he had never heard before but it was still unmistakable. Looking up he met the eyes of Yang Xiao Long. The very woman who had wrecked his club nearly a year ago. Junior was once again about to speak when he noticed just how different the girl was now. Clothing wise she now had a pair of jeans along with knee-high leather boots. While she still wore the same yellow shirt and orange scarf, she had switched to a brown leather trench coat. Finally there was her face and hair. While her hair still had some obvious feminine length to it he did note that it was much shorter than before. Same general hairstyle but shoulder length as opposed to reaching her waist. She was wearing a pair of aviator sunglasses but despite that Junior could easily see something had hardened her. His best guess was that she was at Beacon when everything went down. With everything that happened that night he wasn't about to guess what exactly it was. It could have been any number of things.

All he knew was that the last thing he wanted to do was piss this woman off.

The problem was that not saying anything was beginning to have the very effect he wished to avoid. Letting out a sigh she said, "I haven't got all day Junior, and I'm sure this lovely establishment can't afford another remodeling." His own anger now getting the better of him he responded, "Well that first time could have been easily avoided. With that said, what exactly do you want? I really don't have the time or enough insurance money to deal with you again Blondie." Yang held back an annoyed chuckle. Considering the type of work Junior did was he really asking that? "Well you're an information broker. Figure it out."

Junior couldn't help but smirk now since he finally had one up on this girl. "No" was the simple one word reply Yang got. Junior expected her to blow up at him for that and while she likely held the fate of his club in her hands he wasn't going to budge this time. Not with everything he had at stake. Yet the most unexpected thing happened.

She remained calm.

If there was any sign that his words had made her angry he couldn't see it. Either she had suddenly developed the best poker face he had ever seen, or her threats against his club held no true weight. Without waiting for her to ask why, he simply stood up and started walking towards the bar. With Yang following behind he explained the situation.

"I'll give you credit. You didn't wreck the place last time. However, there's a funny story that goes along with that. You know how I told you I hadn't seen Roman in months? Well a week after that him and a couple of his friends came in. They told me, in no uncertain terms, that if you or any of your team came within a mile of this place, that the club would be the least of my worries. I have no doubt he's out there somewhere, since the Beacon attack would have been the perfect time for him to escape." As he stepped behind the bar Junior grabbed a glass and one of his top shelf liquors and went to pour himself a shot. After downing it he looked Yang in the eyes and asked her, "Do you have any idea what it's like looking over your shoulders for six months? My biggest worry is that nutjob is going to think I had something to do with you eventually finding him and getting his ass tossed in jail."

As he poured himself another drink Yang simply laughed. "Six months? Remnant is falling apart and some of the kingdoms are on the brink of war. Yet your biggest fear is Roman Torchwick?" Letting out a sigh, Junior shook his head as he regretted ever dealing with the man in the first place. Just as he was about to take another shot the next thing Yang said shocked him. "Well you don't have to worry about Roman anymore. I'm afraid he's going to be late to any and all meetings for the rest of our lives." Junior choked on his drink for a moment before doing the classiest thing he could.

He spit it out due to the pure shock of what Yang just said.

Regaining his composure, Junior studied her face. Was she lying about Roman? Surely he was free and out there wasn't he? Junior however had a strong feeling that this particular huntress wouldn't lie to him about something as big as Roman Torchwick being out-of-the-way for good. "Well if that's the case I can only assume he's dead then" was the simple reply he gave. With a chuckle he grabbed another shot glass. Junior wasn't normally one to give freebies but he felt that if what Yang said was true then it deserved a little charity. Setting the empty glass down he asked Yang, "You of age yet Blondie? On the house if you are." Nodding she sat at a stool. "Sure, why not. I'm not going to turn down the most expensive stuff you've got if it's free." Pouring the drink Junior set it down in front of her before getting his own glass to refill. "So what exactly happened?" he asked without looking over. "How did he die?" Yang went to pick up her glass as she replied. "Not well. He escaped and..." Suddenly out of nowhere Junior heard the sound of glass breaking. "DAMMIT!" was the only thing he heard her say. In the entirety of their meeting it was the first time she sounded angry. Junior himself was also angry now however. _That crap is easily thirty lien a shot!_ he thought as he got ready to chew her out. He wasn't about to waste good booze on someone that couldn't be bothered to not drop a glass. However he stopped himself because the next thing he saw shocked him even more than the news that Roman was dead.

There was Yang Xiao Long sitting at his bar crying.

Junior wasn't sure what to make of this turn of events as he stood there watching Yang. That's when he noticed something he hadn't quite seen when she first came into the club. Yang normally wore a pair of fingerless gloves. This time however, she was simply wearing a single brown glove on her right hand. Unlike her normal clothing it wasn't fingerless. Junior stood there dumbstruck as she wiped away tears and then proceeded to pull a bloodless shard of glass out of the glove. He'd be the first to admit he wasn't the smartest guy in the world. However, he dealt with enough hunters and military types to have a pretty good idea what had happened. While he didn't really want to upset her his morbid curiosity got the better of him as he reached for a towel. "Hey Blondie you mind lifting up the sleeve of that coat and taking off the glove? I want to make sure you're not hurt." Honestly it was a lie on his part. He'd seen this sort of thing happen once or twice before and was fairly certain he knew what he was going to see. However, he wanted to see for himself because if something could injure this girl so severely then he was starting to get the feeling that maybe Roman Torchwick really was the least of his problems. Yang hesitated for a moment before taking off the glove and rolling up her sleeve.

Instead of flesh and blood she now had a prosthetic arm and hand that went to about where her elbow would have been. Design wise it was fairly simple. It was unpainted and there were no apparent weapons built into the thing. That told Junior that it was a recent surgery and that she was still getting used to having her arm replaced. As long as it was covered no one would have any clue that Yang had lost her arm.

Junior was slightly taken aback by the reveal. In his line of work he occasionally ran into hunters or other more shady customers with prosthetics. Atlas had made many advances in regards to that sort of technology. However, seeing one on someone so young unnerved him. It certainly explained why she had switched to less revealing clothing. He had no doubt at this point that something very bad happened to her during the Battle of Beacon. Handing her the towel he came out from behind the bar and sat next to her as she cleaned up the spilled liquor and glass shards as best she could. Junior knew that on his best day he could be an asshole, and that on his worst he could be a real scumbag. Looking at Yang like this however made him realize for the first time just how bad the state of the world must be. With the CCTS in Beacon down there wasn't much to go on other than unreliable information. It made him realize that Roman was involved in something bigger than he imagined. That in itself made him sick to his stomach. Once you set aside the legitimate part of his operations, Junior was for all intents a petty thief and a dealer in black market goods. He didn't ask questions about what his clients planned to do with said information, tools or men. However for all his shortcomings as a human being he did have a code that he stood by and that he impressed upon his men. Despite the nature of his business they didn't kill anyone in cold blood. After all a trail of bodies was normally terrible for business. Sure there were times when someone had to be disposed of. On other occasions people had to be paid off. However, even if a body would have made the job much easier Junior and his men wouldn't kill anyone unless they had no choice. At this point he couldn't get rid of the thought that just maybe he may have been partly responsible for what went down in Beacon. Quite a few people died that night. Since then, Junior tended to have people that knew his reputation for getting info come to him seeking folks that had gone missing. While there still wasn't an official tally, due to the various databases that were crippled, everyone knew the number was going to be fairly high when it was all said and done.

By now Yang had managed to pull herself back together. It was Junior who broke the silence. "Don't tell me that smug little asshole did that to you." Shaking her head Yang reached for Junior's bottle with her good hand and then proceeded to grab a glass from behind the bar as well. Under normal circumstances he'd have protested, but in light of everything he was going to let her have her way. Besides, he still remembered what Yang did the first time they met back when she actually had a right hand. He sure as hell didn't want to experience that again with the additional aid of a robotic grip. Slamming back a drink Yang set the glass on the bar and said, "Roman? No. This was courtesy of Adam Taurus." For the third time in a span of about fifteen minutes Junior felt like he got punched in the gut. "The leader of the White Fang?" he asked her. "You're lucky to be alive." Yang didn't answer him but he could sense that she knew he spoke the truth. For those that did know of him, Adam wasn't exactly the most stable of individuals. There weren't many people who could say they fought him and lived. Even fewer could say they fought him without being injured severely in some way. Adam took a sadistic pleasure in crippling human opponents. He wanted them to know they had lost before ending their lives. Junior himself had no qualms with the faunus. However, all the stories he heard about Adam creeped him the hell out. It was almost as if he became more unhinged with each passing day. Had he known Roman Torchwick was working with Adam Taurus, Junior would have saved everyone the trouble and shot himself in the head right there.

That was however the part that didn't make sense to Junior. Roman was a known bigot, and to say Adam was less than pleased about humans would be a major understatement. How the hell did those two manage to come together without killing each other? Despite everything in his head telling him to not get involved, Junior had made up his mind. Deep down he knew that however indirect it may have been that he helped cause all this. Whether he liked it or not he had his fingers in whatever went down at Beacon. Plus there was the matter of Vale getting caught in the crossfire. Junior could have been killed that night had he been in the wrong place at the wrong time. It would have been suicide by proxy. _Something has to be done_ he thought. _I've got to do something to try to make things right._

Plus, there was also the fact that he really didn't want to go down for aiding terrorists if he somehow got linked to everything.

The look upon his face was deadly serious as he finished off his bottle of Vacuo's finest rum. "Ok then Blondie" he said. "You want information? I can't make promises but I'll tell you whatever it is I know. If you need gear I'll make the calls. However, you're going to need to tell me just what the hell happened at Beacon. I need to know what I'm getting involved in. Also, you've got to tell me everything, even if it may not seem important to you. Otherwise if I'm working off bad info it could get you killed. You understand?" Yang nodded as she put her glove back on. She wasn't sure what had sparked this sudden change in attitude, and deep down she couldn't help but feel that maybe Junior saw this as more of a mutually beneficial arrangement. However, she'd be damned if she wasn't going to take advantage of this.

She'd also be damned if she didn't at least get a little more of that rum.

"Everything, eh? You might want to grab another bottle then Junior. This could take a while."

* * *

 **AN: So there we go. The first chapter of Broken World, Broken Souls is in the bag.**

 **Let me take a moment to introduce myself. I'm someone who used to dabble in forum roleplaying and writing when I was younger. As a result, I'm likely to be a bit on the rusty side in regards to my writing. I've gotten into RWBY over the last six months or so. So far I've enjoyed the series quite a bit, and honestly watching it has struck a creative nerve that's been long dead. Up until the middle of Volume 3, I pondered how the story could potentially progress if something major happened to cause Team RWBY to break up. It's actually strange that things lined up the way they did in canon. My initial rough outline regarding why RWBY would break up contained Beacon's fall, severe injuries to some of the team and character deaths (namely Ozpin and Qrow). While some things were obviously shuffled around due to how canon events played out, it was actually quite exciting from a writer's perspective to see everything actually fall in line with my plans.**

 **Moving forward the story will mainly focus on Yang. As the other members of Team RWBY come into the mix, the focus may shift to them at some points. Yang will however be the central character. Key reoccurring themes will be the cycle of revenge, as well as attempting to move on with one's life despite losses. By the time it's all said and done, this will be an AU Volume 4.**

 **Few random things regarding the chapter since I'm sure these might get asked:**  
 **-Yang drinking: Bit of a play off Barb's "Yang's nearly 18, right?" comment during a livestream. Miles then helpfully added "We don't know Remnant's laws." In truth, these comments were less about drinking and more about something else ^_^()**  
 **Anyway I decided to roll with it since the legal drinking age in many countries is 18. She won't ever reach Qrow's levels in regards to being frequently smashed, however she won't turn down a free drink if given half a chance in a situation where drinking wouldn't affect her or her job adversely.**

 **-Yang's attitude: When the story opens, Yang has already had some recovery time. As she's still coming to terms with things however, she'll likely have moments of weakness or depression. Realistically in canon I could see her becoming a bit more serious following the events of Volume 3. You'll see traces of her old attitude, but don't expect her to be 100% like she is pre-V3. Overall I'm most looking forward to seeing how the canon Yang eventually measures up with my version.**

 **-Junior: He's one of those characters that hasn't had much screen time or development. Therefore, you tend to see him in just about every role. Mob boss? Ineffective, comedy relief villain? Chessmaster with his own plan? It's pretty much all been done. This version is going to be somewhere in between mob boss/informant and nominal hero.**

 **With that all said, be sure to leave a review and let me know what you guys think. The first few chapters are written and mainly going through proofreading and minor edits. Those will be up within the week. Past that I have no firm update schedule planned. However, as this is currently my only story I'm thinking I should be able to push out a chapter roughly every week or so. Enjoy!**


	2. Awakening to a New Reality

Chapter 2  
"Awakening to a New Reality"

* * *

City of Vale, about six months ago

* * *

She wasn't sure how long she had been out for. However, as Yang began to stir she quickly became aware of three things; she had a massive headache, there was the constant beeping sound of various pieces of computer equipment and the room she was in was far too brightly lit and white for her tastes. Despite her groggy state, she already knew where she was.

 _A hospital...great..._

Yang made no attempts to get up and move. For now her first major goal was trying to piece together what had happened to land her in an ICU. What was frustrating her was that she had the basics down, but up to a certain point she couldn't remember a damn thing. Even the bits she could remember seemed fuzzy at some points.

 _Grimm all over the place._  
 _Beacon on fire and in shambles._  
 _The White Fang._

Her mind stuck on that last bit of knowledge for a moment. She knew they were there. She could even picture the masks they wore. Closing her eyes she tried to remember. She wanted to say it had something to do with a man. Try as she might however, whatever mental block she was experiencing just wouldn't let her get the full picture of what happened.

 _Ok then. Can't remember shit. Let's work backwards then. What started all this?_

The final match of the Vytal Festival Tournament. She had been watching in Team RWBY's dorm. Yang seemed to remember the match being between two of her friends. Pyrrha Nikos, the so called "Invincible Girl" from Mistral. Team RWBY and Team JNPR of course knew the truth behind her ability to seemingly never get hit. It didn't make watching her fight any less impressive however. The other combatant was Penny Polendina. She was a strange girl from Atlas that they met in the city a few months back. While she was more Ruby's friend than anyone else, in the days since the tournament started they had all gotten together on occasion. Despite her oddness Yang did enjoy hanging out with her.

Yang was getting off track with her thoughts however. Putting everything else aside she thought back to the fight. Overall the battle itself seemed very straightforward. Within minutes however, it became anything but that. Eventually, there came a point where Pyrrha, for whatever reason, used a far greater amount of her Semblance than she needed to deflect an oncoming attack. The wires from Penny's rather unconventional weapons quickly wrapped themselves around her. What happened next occurred with an unbelievable amount of speed. Before she could blink Penny was down and ripped apart by her own weapons. Yang seemed to recall staring in wide-eyed shock before noticing a lack of blood and gore in the arena. In fact it looked more like...wires? Metal? Whatever she was it wasn't human. In fact it reminded Yang of an Atlesian Knight almost. She didn't have much time to process what was going on however.

"This is not a tragedy. This was not an accident."

Yang recalled the voice. The voice that stirred up all the negative emotions everyone had. The voice that played with the mistrust, fear and questions that were on the minds of various people. That was what helped draw the Grimm to the area. It was also the moment that Yang knew for a fact that she had been played in her own match. The memory being fresh in her mind once more stirred up her anger she felt towards Mercury.

 _I swear if I find that smug asshole..._

"So you're finally awake?"

Yang was so out of it that she hadn't realized that she was being watched the whole time. Looking to her left she saw the source. Her uncle, Qrow Branwen was there sitting in a chair. Standing nearby was Weiss. She was glad to see them but saw that they both looked absolutely terrible. Both looked as if they had very little sleep in the last few days and neither of them looked anywhere near how they normally did. Qrow always had a tendency to look like he just woke up from a three-day bender. Today however, he looked a bit more disheveled than usual. _Almost like he'd finished a month's supply of alcohol in less than a week_ Yang though to herself with a small chuckle. As for Weiss she always prided herself on her appearance. Yet here she was with her hair down and her usual clothing looking far more battered and beat up than she would have likely preferred. Weiss apparently had a few minor injuries since she had a busted lip and a nasty looking bruise on her cheek. Thankfully it nothing that a few days of rest wouldn't fix.

Weiss was the first to break the silence. "Your father is in another room with Ruby. Do you want me to get him?" she asked. Yang was so out of it that she had totally forgotten about her younger sister. Qrow instantly saw the look on her face and was quick to reassure her. "She's fine Yang!" he said as he quickly moved to her side. Relief instantly came to her but Yang was curious about the sudden movement he made.

 _It's almost like he doesn't want me to get up._

Something deep down told her she should be concerned over that. Yang pushed the thought aside for now since her main concern was now entirely focused on the aftermath of the attack. Qrow watched his niece for a moment before continuing on with his explanation. "Ruby's fine. She's a bit worn out however. The doctors say she'll recover fully but that it might be a few more days before she wakes up." Yang let out a massive sigh of relief. Now it was onto her next concern.

"What about Blake?" she asked. Yang's mind was still incredibly fuzzy. She was starting to recall that Blake was injured during all the fighting. At this point Yang figured the gaps might have been partly due to the painkillers the doctors almost certainly had her on. Yang blinked for a moment at that thought. _Wait, why would they have me on painkillers?_ She was about to ask before she got snapped back to reality by her first question.

"Well..." Weiss started to say. Yang was able to at least sense that Blake wasn't dead. However, at this point she knew she wasn't going to like the answer. It seemed like Weiss was struggling to find the words but knowing how her teammate was Yang didn't need to hear it. "She ran away again, didn't she?" For a moment Yang was surprised at how harsh that sounded. Weiss clearly didn't know how to continue, so she let Qrow take over. "Well she'll live. As for where she is, I have no clue. She was supposed to be in the bed next to you recovering from her own wounds. The leader of the White Fang did a major number on her."

Yang frowned at that new bit of info. So that was their leader then? Qrow meanwhile continued with the story. "Yang I'm sorry. Weiss was out of the room checking in with Tai. I had to step out for a moment to speak with Ironwood. It couldn't have been more than five minutes. That faunus boy was in the waiting room." _Faunus boy?_ Yang thought. _He must be talking about Sun._ Meanwhile, Qrow continued with the explaination. "He saw her going from rooftop to rooftop and came to get me. By the time I got back the window was open and her personal belongings were gone." She wasn't sure what to make of this info. Why would Blake leave so suddenly? Yang wasn't even sure if she cared enough to know the reason. Deep down she felt this had something to do with whatever trust issues Blake seemed to have with the world. It still hurt however. But that wasn't important right now. There were many other questions Yang needed to ask. She was getting tired of laying down however. Qrow's face instantly turned to a mix of fear and concern, as Yang reached out to use the rails of the hospital bed to pull herself up.

It was at this moment Yang knew something was severely wrong.

She grabbed the left rail without any issues. The right rail however? She couldn't feel it. At this point she must have had the same look of fear that Qrow had. Whatever mental block she had regarding the events that occurred seemed to lift at that point.

 _Blake crying out in pain as the White Fang's leader stabbed her._  
 _The look on his face that seemed to dare Yang to do something._  
 _Yang letting her rage take over as she rushed in without a second thought._  
 _The searing, burning pain as the man cut right through her arm._

Yang didn't need the sound of the medical equipment beginning to beep far more rapidly to tell her that her heart was racing. Weiss and her uncle were right by her side holding her left hand. She simultaneously dreaded and feared what she was about to see. Deep down Yang already knew what she going to find. Even so it was something she knew she was going to have to eventually face and come to terms with. With her eyes closed, she slowly turned her head towards her right arm before opening them again.

Or in this particular case, what was left of her right arm.

It was bandaged heavily, but from what she could see it had been cut off at the elbow. Many different emotions went through Yang as she just simply stared at it. As the tears began to flow she tried to speak. The best she could get out however, was a rather uncharacteristic squeak. She wasn't even sure what to say or ask anymore. Waking up to find you were missing a limb wasn't exactly an everyday occurence. Eventually, she managed to get her breathing under control and calm down a bit. However, once she tried to wipe away her tears she quickly realized she had just attempted to do so with a hand that no longer existed. That in itself stirred her up again.

Weiss was at a loss over what to do. Unlike the other members of her team she was no stranger to death. Her father's company was a constant target for the White Fang. As a result, people within the company were killed or injured with alarming frequency. However, this was the first time she had directly experienced a friend or family member with such a grievous injury. Unlike the two younger girls, Qrow did have the experience in dealing with such things. He was also torn however. The uncle in him wanted to tell Yang everything was going to be ok. But, at the same time he couldn't exactly sugarcoat things. "I'm not going to feed you a line of bullshit Yang" he said. "This will be far from easy. Give the doctors about a month or so and they should be able to get you set up with a basic prosthetic. We'll have to discuss other options later however." Yang eventually found her voice and said, "You're talking about continuing as a hunter aren't you?" Sitting back down Qrow pulled out his flask and took a drink before putting it away again "Well that's up to you Yang. However, I doubt it's a discussion you want to have now. We've got plenty to talk about." Yang hoped the worst news was behind her.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

Eventually, once everyone calmed down a bit, Weiss and Qrow started to fill her in more about the situation. Each new piece of info didn't do much to help her mood. All it did was make her feel worse.

 _Beacon was gone._  
 _The school and parts of the city were filled with Grimm._  
 _Ozpin was missing._  
 _The CCTS was no longer operational._  
 _Atlas was being blamed for the attack._  
 _Pyrrha was dead._

That last bit of info hit Yang the hardest. She couldn't wrap her mind around it. Pyrrha was the Invincible Girl. The perfect warrior that couldn't be beaten. How could she lose? How could she die? Eventually, it got to a point where Yang couldn't take anymore. She asked her teammate and uncle if she could be alone for a few moments. While it was clear that they didn't want to leave her side, they respected her wishes and let her be for a bit. It was an absolute overload of information for Yang and she couldn't quite process it all. Each new revelation about that night crushed her a bit more inside. For the first time in her life she truly felt defeated and hopeless. As she laid there in the bed alone her mind was made up.

She was done. Yang Xiao Long would never fight again.

* * *

 **AN: Next couple of chapters are taking a trip to flashback land. We won't spend too long on this stuff since there's only so many ways one can write "depressed and laying in bed" but we will hit key moments in Yang's recover. While you guys are getting the full story, Junior will essentially get the abridged version.**

 **-Timeline: There hasn't been a firm timeline established regarding the end of Volume 3. Time has clearly passed, we just don't know how much. Therefore, I'm going to assume that the Vytal Festival was in early fall. When we see Ruby leaving Patch later, that'll be late in the winter. Yang will have woken up about three days after Beacon, Ruby about a week later once they've been moved home.**

 **-Weiss: We don't see what happens to her once Ruby goes up the side of Beacon's tower. For the sake of the story she began getting overwhelmed at the base of the tower and had her aura drained. After getting knocked around a bit, Qrow would have done what he does best and show up just in time. Since it is established that Jaune's aura is very powerful let's assume that even her minor wounds have taken a little more time to heal.**

 **More to come later. As always, reviews are welcome!**


	3. Making Adjustments

Chapter 3  
"Making Adjustments"

* * *

Village of Patch, about one month ago

* * *

"This will be far from easy."

Qrow's words had come to mind once again on that evening. In fact, they had been on Yang's mind just about every day for the last few months. She had taken the fact that she was previously right-handed for granted. That in itself was a hard adjustment to make. There were several other issues as well. First off was the hospital. Due to the communications breakdown, thanks to the destruction of the CCTS, they had a mixup. On the day that Yang was to be fitted for her basic prosthetic, she had discovered that they made the mistake of calling in for a left arm. Due to the lack of CCTS communications, as well as the mounting tensions with Atlas, the hospital predicted that it would be at least another month or two before they could get her a proper prosthetic. In truth it was much closer to four months. According to them they were going to have it ready that weekend. Yang wasn't putting much faith in that claim however. Even so, she hoped the wait was over. It was bad enough living the last five months with no arm. She didn't know if she could do another week, much less another month.

Then there was her relationship with her family. Yang really was trying, but it wasn't easy. She knew things were starting to get strained. For the last few weeks, Yang found herself talking very little. She wasn't even jumping at chances to make stupid jokes or bad puns. At one point, she was having a bad day and flat-out insisted that no one disturb her. It wasn't until a day later that she discovered that she had become a total recluse on her birthday. Finding that fact out was an odd feeling for Yang. On the one hand she felt terrible about it. Yet, there was a part of her that just didn't have the energy to care anymore. She really wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean. If she felt bad about it, then there was some part of her deep down that wanted things to get better wasn't there? Despite that however, Yang just wanted to be left alone. Between the various people who left her, friends and family that died, her injury and the state of the world she felt like it was enough. Yang was only 18, yet she felt like she had been hurt enough times to fill several lifetimes. She would have been perfectly happy just remaining in Patch for the rest of her life. There'd be far less chance of getting burned again.

As far as the actual relationships with her remaining friends and family went, she wasn't sure where she stood with some of them. She hadn't seen or spoken to some of them for months, while others had to endure her newfound moodiness. Weiss originally intended to travel back to Patch with them, but she never got the chance. Her father had quickly made it a point to come to Vale so that he could bring her back to Atlas. While the meeting was short, Yang already knew she didn't like the man. The entire time he was there it was almost as if he seemed to think being in Vale was beneath him. At one point, Sun had stumbled into the awkward meeting. The only thing that the elder Schnee seemed able to do at this point, was be overly critical about every last thing he could find about Sun. His casual dress, his faunus heritage and even the fact that Sun knew his daughter to begin with. Yang knew that if she had been his daughter that she'd also want to get as far away as possible.

Team JNPR was partly split up after the death of Pyrrha. Jaune had family in Vale, so it wasn't a hard choice for him regarding where to go. Ren and Nora were orphans however. Due to their situation and age, Beacon WAS their home. With nowhere else to go, Qrow and her father managed to get them rooms at Signal. Following the events at the Vytal Festival, the other academies had suspended studies until a full investigation could be finished. Everything was going extremely slow however. Vale seemed to be the only kingdom that trusted Atlas now. That in itself put Mistral and Vacuo on edge. Had it not been for Qrow, it was likely that Vale also would have turned on Atlas. The unfortunate side effect however, was the other two kingdoms assuming Vale was taken over. While no one had outright attacked, the trust simply wasn't there. That alone brought the investigation to a halt. As a result of the suspended studies and the investigation, some students simply returned home. Those that didn't have that luxury were able to stay at their respective schools, provided they helped out somehow. For most students that translated into hunting down Grimm. Yang was sure that Nora and Ren had no problem with that. On occasion the two of them would swing by their home. Usually they'd speak with Ruby. Sometimes they would spar with her father. Yang however, went into hermit mode when they showed up. Seeing them reminded her of Pyrrha. Each time that happened it only served to remind Yang that none of them were safe.

As for the rest of her family? Qrow had left on another mission shortly after they initially returned home five months ago. Her father was generally the best person to talk to about everything. He knew what it was like to lose family, so talking to him helped a little. Ruby on the other hand was almost like her usual self. Yang thought it may have been her sister's way of coping with things. However, she also felt the cheerfulness was just wrong. One of their best friends was dead. Technically two of them if you factored in Penny. Yet, while Yang silently brooded, Ruby seemed to take opportunities to try to get her to open up. Eventually, there came a point where her sister said she was becoming too much like Blake.

That was the tipping point for Yang.

She didn't remember most the things she said. The only thing Yang did recall was eventually telling Ruby that she was just a child who had no idea how the world worked. She recalled the hurt expression on Ruby's face, as she stormed out of the house. In Yang's mind, what she said couldn't have been as bad as being compared to a coward like Blake. In fact, Blake's constant running away started to remind Yang of her mother. Those were the two things someone should have been able to rely on: family and team members. They were also the two things that had abandoned Yang when she felt she needed them the most.

That's why she was now outside. It was snowing and she lacked the proper clothing, but like everything else the last few months she didn't care. Yang had to blow off some kind of steam, so she did the one thing she knew how to do: she trained.

Or at least she attempted to.

It was actually the first time in months she had done any kind of real movement. Yang no longer had a desire to be a hunter. Her injury, combined with those feelings mainly kept her in a bed all this time. To say she was sloppy would have been a major understatement. Yet, despite the loss of her arm, Yang went through the motions of a fairly simple kata. She was feeling like a complete novice however. Her footwork was off and the lack of her arm left her unbalanced. Even so she persisted. After several minutes, Yang moved on to a more complex practice routine. It didn't take long for her to stumble and lose her footing however. Yang attempted to break her fall, but once again she got a painful reminder that she lost her right arm. Rather than stop herself, she just went face first into the ground. Yang cursed as she reached up to wipe away some blood from a fresh cut on her cheek. It was nothing major. Unlike her arm, it was a wound her aura would take care of within a few minutes. It was at that moment that Yang realized something, despite her frustration over her degraded skills.

It was the first time in months she actually felt a little better.

As she got back to her feet to try again, the sound of clapping came from the door of her family's cabin. With a sigh, Yang didn't even bother to look towards her house as she let her stance drop. "How long have you been standing there?" was the question she asked. She heard her father's footsteps on the fresh snow as he came up from behind her. "Long enough. I'd say all things considered you get a seven out of ten on your form. That landing however?" Taiyang didn't finish his statement. Instead he playfully waved one of his hands in front of his nose as he shook his head. Frowning, Yang told him, "Well you're one to talk. At least you've got a matching pair of arms."

Tai was now standing in front of his daughter and had taken up a stance of his own. Yang really didn't want any part of this, but it was clear he wouldn't take no for an answer. With her left foot and hand forward, she nearly touched his own fist before attempting a jab to his face. With zero effort on his part, Tai brought his right forearm up to block the blow. Normally, Yang would have followed up with a right hand, but since she lacked that option she instead tried to go above his block and backhand him. Tai once again easily blocked the attack, this time using an open-handed block from his left hand. He could see the frustration mounting on her face now, yet he remained calm with her. "Just take it slow for now and worry about simple movements" he told her. "After all, you're essentially having to learn how to fight all over again." Nodding, Yang followed her father's directions and for the next few minutes that's all the two of them did. Simple blows followed with easy blocks. Yang did what she could, while Tai made sure he didn't do anything that would be impossible for his daughter at this point.

Eventually, he broke the silence and asked what had been on his mind for the last few minutes. "So why are you out here anyway? I thought you said you were done trying to be a hunter?" Now that her mind was a bit more clear, Yang just shrugged. "Honestly? No clue. Falling into old habits I suppose. After what happened inside it was either this, or head back to my bedroom. A one-armed woman doesn't exactly have many options for passing the time alone in a bedroom." Tai couldn't help himself now as he dropped his stance and burst into the biggest laugh Yang had heard from him in quite some time. She had no clue what she said to set him off and felt like she missed out on a big joke. Finally, her father pulled himself together and told her, "You might want to think about what you said and rephrase that." Yang was still confused up until the moment it dawned on her. When it did, she could feel her face light up out of pure embarrassment. Eventually, she too gave in and started to laugh along with her father.

After they both calmed down, father and daughter had decided to sit on a nearby log and have a serious talk about things. "I think I know what your real problem is" Tai said to his daughter. "You've obviously been hurt by the fact that your partner seemed to just run off. I know that feeling all too well. Not a day goes by where I don't think about Raven and wonder where she is." Yang didn't like where the conversation was heading, but out of respect she let her father continue. "I think Ruby struck a nerve in there when she compared you to Blake. Deep down, you feel she's right." Once more, Yang felt her anger rising and was now ready to protest, but Tai put a hand up to stop her. When her father had something to say, he would not be shy about letting his opinion be known.

"Here's what I think. From what I've gathered and heard, Blake is a bit on the quiet side. She's the type that keeps to herself, isn't she?" Yang just nodded. While her father had not met Blake, he had hit the nail right on the head. Continuing on he said, "Over the last few months, your personality has shifted completely. You've gone from someone who makes terrible jokes, to a person that's quiet. Someone that keeps to themself and is overall a bit anti-social. I've actually lost track of the number of times Ren and Nora have been here. Before all this happened, you'd have jumped at the chance to see your friends. Instead, you just spend your days mainly staying out of everyone's way. Granted you've been through hell, but that's no way to live Yang. Eventually, you have to pick up the shattered pieces and try to put what you can back together. Otherwise you'll be just like your partner: running. Maybe not physically, but mentally. That in itself can be just as bad if not worse." At that moment, it all came together for Yang. Ruby had made a simple observation about her sister. Without meaning to do so, she revealed the true issue Yang had: she was also running away.

Snapping her away from her thoughts was the hand of her father, reaching out to help her up. "Come on. Let's get inside before we both freeze to death." Yang grabbed on and pulled herself up, but as she did so she noticed Tai visibly wince a bit. She was curious about that, but currently had other things on her mind as the two of them walked towards the front door. "So what do you think I should do?" she asked her father. Stopping for a moment, Tai looked her in the eyes. "Well, that's going to be up to you Yang. I'm not going to say continue being a hunter, but I'm also not going to say stop. What I will say is this however: you have to stop running. Until you do that, you'll never truly recover or get past everything that's happened." With a sigh, Tai looked at the ground before looking back at his daughter. "Everyone has a moment they run away from. It's how they react that determines if they eventually move on, or simply give into despair for the rest of their life. Honestly, I don't know what would have become of you girls if I gave in and kept on running." Yang wasn't sure what to say in response to that. Her father was clearly referring to the death of his second wife, Summer, and how he spent a several months just pulling himself back together over that.

As they finally got to the door, Yang was now clearly able to see her father's arms and gasped. They were covered in bruises from where she made contact while sparring. She couldn't believe what she saw. Her left hand was far from her dominant hand, and it was far from a full-blown, full contact sparring session. How could she have done that much damage? Tai seemed to sense what she was looking at as he chuckled. "Don't tell me it's been so long that you've forgotten what your Semblance does." _My Semblance?_ Yang thought. Then it suddenly hit her. Under normal conditions, her Semblance allowed her to gain a temporary power boost as she became more and more wounded in battle. It never crossed her mind what could potentially happen if she received a more permanent injury. Even so, Yang was still skeptical. Sensing what she was about to ask, Tai said "I guess I owe your uncle twenty lien. He's had a theory about that for months now. Just do me a favor." Pulling her closer for a hug, Tai told his daughter, "Don't lose anymore limbs. I'd rather have the rest of you stay in one piece." With tears in her eyes she said "Well I won't make promises I can't keep, but I'll see what I can do." It was the first time since her whole ordeal began, that Yang's tears weren't related to sadness or despair.

For the first time since waking up, Yang felt a small measure of hope.

* * *

 **AN: Three chapters down, unknown number to go. Bit of a jump in time on this chapter. As I said in my previous author's note, there's only so many ways one can write "depressed Yang is depressed."**

 **I think what this chapter shows is that Yang's anger is both her greatest strength, but that it can also be her greatest weakness. In canon, anger can push her Semblance to it's full power. Yet it's also the thing that has cost her dearly. Here we see her anger pushing her into old habits. I myself have worked out on a punching bag when I've had moments of anger. Such a thing seemed totally in character for Yang. One thing leads to another and at the end of it Yang starts to realize she's not nearly as helpless as she believed. She still apprehensive at this point. However, she's slowly starting to come around and at this point would think that maybe she can help, even if she away from the main fighting.**

 **Anyway stop reading this note. Chapter 4 has gone up along with this one. That's right: two chapters in one night!**


	4. Making Amends

Chapter 4  
"Making Amends"

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Village of Patch, about one month ago

* * *

Following their sparring session, Tai had elected to go inside for the night. Yang on the other hand had decided to remain outside for a bit. She wanted things to cool off a bit more before speaking with Ruby. Following the revelations regarding what her injury did to her Semblance, Yang needed some extra time alone to think. While she did have some small hope that she might not be nearly as bad off as she originally thought, Yang was still apprehensive about her future and her current fighting style. Under normal circumstances her injury would have been horrible, but not completely unfixable. Given the current state of the world however, she wasn't entirely sure when she'd truly be able to say she was ready if she did decide to continue as a hunter.

A big part of the current issue was her continued lack of a prosthetic. Before the whole mess began, it would have been fairly simple to get even a basic prosthetic. A month at the most, possibly as little as two weeks if you had money or knew the right people. Something more advanced would take time however. A limb designed for combat typically had to be specially designed for its user. At this point, the fact that it had been nearly six months was starting to seriously worry Yang in regards to getting a specialized prosthetic in a timely manner.

There were also other factors to consider regarding a special design. First off, it had to account for nerves that were no longer there if the user's fighting style was reliant on touch. A soldier with a basic dust firearm could be fine with a basic prosthetic. Someone with a more specialized weapon would need a limb that would work with their weapon or fighting style. Even then, some amputees would elect to use a basic prosthetic. There was far less downtime in regards to getting one. Plus combat limbs did have drawbacks. Due to their ability to replicate a lost sensation of touch, someone who had such a limb could potentially feel pain if the limb was damaged or it's calibration was off. Yang had heard of extreme cases where sudden pain, followed by a loss of feeling had made some people relive the trauma of originally losing that body part. She really didn't want to know what such a situation would do to her state of mind if something like that came to pass. Losing her arm was still a very touchy subject, one that Yang didn't like discussing or talking about. It certainly wasn't something she wanted to relive.

Another factor was the pain Yang would feel where her arm once was. This wasn't normal pain however. She literally had moments where she'd feel pain in a limb that no longer existed. Yang had heard stories of this so-called phantom pain, but until she experienced it herself she figured that's all they were. She assumed it was a matter of people who were unable to come to terms with what happened to them. It was very unnerving the first time it happened. It wasn't something she experienced often, but when she did her actual remaining portion of her arm would just ache where it would have met the part she lost. Meanwhile, there would be a burning sensation in the part that was gone. It usually wasn't too bad, but at it's worst it would typically wake her in the middle of the night and leave her unable to get back to sleep.

In any case, first things first. At the very least Yang needed a basic prosthetic. Until she crossed that bridge she couldn't even realistically consider the possibility of continuing as a huntress. Yang wasn't sure how long she was outside. However, she knew she couldn't put it off any longer.

She had to talk to her sister.

It didn't take Yang long to get upstairs and to their room. It was actually a strange feeling stepping in. Yang had actually been in the guest room since returning home. Originally, it was so she could get rest while Ruby recovered from her coma. Qrow and her father had taken shifts watching after her in the week she took to wake up. Yang needed some kind of privacy while she herself recovered. However, what was supposed to be temporary became a little more permanent once Yang's newfound moodiness and anti-social behavior overtook her normally upbeat personality.

Yang let out a small curse as she nearly tripped over Zwei, who was sleeping in the middle of the floor. For a moment she thought that maybe Ruby wasn't in the room, but when her eyes adjusted to the darkness she was disappointed to see that she was already in bed. Part of her thought that maybe she was simply laying there waiting for Yang to make the first move. Another part of her didn't want to make too much noise in case her sister really was asleep. Sitting on her old bed, she watched for a moment. Ruby's back was to her as she laid in her own bed facing the wall. Yang finally gave in and broke the silence by whispering her sister's name.

"Ruby?"  
No response.

Yang let out a sigh. She really needed to get things off her chest. While her father did most of the talking during their own encounter, Yang knew this was the first time in months she had opened up at all. She didn't want to wait until tomorrow or the next day. Part of her feared that something would depress her again and leave her unapproachable for another couple of months. Right now, that was something she couldn't afford. If she was going to start moving on it had to be now. Even if Ruby ultimately didn't hear her she had to get it all out there.

"Don't worry. Don't get up" she whispered to the sleeping form of her sister. Bending over slightly, Yang attempted to lean her head on her hand for support. Instead she let out another annoyed sigh as she quickly realized she had once again attempted to use a non-existant right hand. Switching to her left hand, she rubbed her forehead out of frustration as she spoke quietly. "Sometimes I'm not sure if I'll ever get used to this. I at least wish the damn thing would stop hurting and waking me in the middle of the night." Yang watched for a sign that Ruby was awake and listening, but if she was she couldn't see one. "Look, I know living with me these past few months hasn't been easy. I wish I could make you understand what it's been like." By now the tears began to flow once more. Yang managed to keep her voice from breaking as she actually remembered to use her left hand to wipe them away for once. "Everything is just so messed up. I really don't know how you've managed to keep it together sis." Now she was starting to remember all the times in the last few months Ruby had attempted to help her. Rather than thank her however, Yang mainly gave her the cold shoulder since any kind of assistance only served to remind her of her disability. Yang couldn't put off what was on her mind any longer and just blurted it out.

"Rubes, I've been a complete bitch."

Yang let the comment just hang in the air for a moment. Looking away from her sister out of shame, her eyes fell upon her right arm. "Well maybe not complete. Parts are missing, some assembly may be required." It was the first real joke Yang cracked in a very long time. Despite the darkness surrounding such a joke, she couldn't help smiling slighty at it. Yang could have sworn she heard Ruby groan at the sheer terribleness of it. She watched for a moment and hoped it was a sign that perhaps she was now awake and wanting to chat. After about a minute of watching however, Yang knew she really was out cold and done for the night. Even so, she still needed to let Ruby know what she was thinking. "Honestly, you've been a better big sister than I have the last several months. I don't know how the hell that happened but it's true. As for me? I guess I still need time. Uncle Qrow told me none of this would be easy. Problem is, I've focused too much on dwelling on things."

Yang knew the conversation was very one-sided but still decided to persist a bit longer. "Dad's right. I need to start pulling myself together. Even if I don't go back to being a huntress, I can't just stay in my room any longer. Give me time Ruby. I don't know how long it's going to take. However, maybe we might be able to make things right. Dad and Qrow never told me the full details of what happened at the top of Beacon Tower. Yet, you always seem convinced that we can somehow make a difference. Even if it's a small difference, and I'm stuck on the sidelines, I want to be able to help you make that difference." Yang had plenty more to say, but she couldn't keep talking to someone who was asleep. She decided it was best to continue this in the morning, so she got up and started to head for her own room. Before stepping out however, she turned back to her sister and said, "Get some rest. We've got much to discuss in the morning."

With that, Yang left for her room. Following her discussion with her father and the one-sided heart to heart with Ruby, she really did feel better for the first time in ages. However, unknown to Yang, someone was feeling much worse. Unknown to her, Ruby had been awake the whole time. As upset as she was, she never blamed Yang for anything she did or said the last few months. Deep down she had wanted to talk to her about everything. Ruby couldn't do that however. She had set events in motion on her own, yet she couldn't talk to Yang. If she did, she'd lose the resolve to do what she felt she had to do. Ruby wished Yang had managed to pull herself together sooner, but it was something that couldn't be helped. It had already been far too long. Delaying her own plans ran the risk of putting Remnant at even greater risk. Ruby wasn't sure what the future held. She didn't know what would happen and she didn't know if things would end in success or failure.

She only hoped she'd live long enough to see Yang again.

* * *

 **AN: I don't think I have to explain what's about to happen the next morning if you've seen the end of Volume 3. If you haven't seen it, then I've seriously got to ask you why you're reading this fic. Don't get me wrong, I'm flattered. However, by the end of the first chapter I had spoiled several key story elements that are likely to be felt in canon for years to come.**

 **I'm being serious. If you've not seen Volume 3 go fix that now. Miles, Kerry and Monty (RIP) have put together an amazing story. You don't need spoilers from an unknown, newish fanfiction writer that only wishes he was as good as them :P**

 **-Regarding prosthetics: Aside from Ironwood and Mercury, we haven't really seen them in action. We also haven't gotten a wealth of info. Therefore, I figured there would be two classes of prosthetic: basic and specialized. A basic prosthetic would essentially be a far more advanced version of what we have in real life. They'd make day to day tasks easier, but they wouldn't be designed for major hand to hand/melee fighting. Plus they'd lack the ability to allow the user to have proper feedback. This is why we see Yang crush a glass in the first chapter. Without proper feeling, it's hard for her to gauge how much force to use, and since Yang was a righty, she's more than a little heavy handed...  
**  
 _ ***can hear his readers shouting "DAMMIT BARB!"***_  
 **  
As far as the more specialized versions go they'd be like Mercury's legs. For another example think Luke Skywalker. We see multiple cases of his hand reacting to painful sensations, as well as damage, like it's actual flesh and blood. Also before you ask the answer is yes: such specialized variants can also be a gun.**

 **-Yang's attitude: Some might feel she's opened up a bit quickly over the last two chapters. People need to keep in mind it's been about five months at this point. Tai sparring with her slowly brought her out of her shell. Actually seeing firsthand that she's not useless had brought her out more. Feeling a need to talk to Ruby in light of all this has pretty much gotten her guard to drop. Granted, I don't think Yang could ever go back to being 100% like her pre-V3 self, but I do believe that even in canon once she does open up she'll be similar to the more serious version I'm hoping to portray.**

 **No firm timeframe on Chapter 5. That's going to require time to write since it'll be the first chapter that's going to be fully written following the initial posting of this fic. I will say this however: right now the plan is for the action to pick up in Chapter 6. Chapter 7 will kick the present day plot into motion. Stay tuned, make sure to favorite, follow, review and look forward to it!**


	5. Lifting the Veil

Chapter 5  
"Lifting the Veil"

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Village of Patch, about one month ago

* * *

"He better have a damn good explanation for this!"

Yang wasn't sure how to react to this change in her father as she sat at the kitchen table. She had seen Taiyang in various mental states before. While she was still young when it happened, she remembered how hard he took the news of Summer's death. Since then she had seen everything from depression, to worry, fear, happiness and disappointment. This however, was completely unexpected.

In her 18 years, Yang could not recall a single moment where her father was truly angry.

The morning had actually started off normal enough. Tai was making breakfast for his daughters. Meanwhile, Yang was upstairs starting to wake up. Through the frost covered window a bird had caught her eye. She couldn't quite tell if it was a crow or a raven, but she could have sworn it was watching her. It was actually unnerving. Yang couldn't put her finger on why, but deep down she knew something was off. She was eventually snapped back to reality once the bird flew off. It was at that point she became aware of Tai frantically searching the area around the house.

Ruby was gone.

Yang read the letter her sister left behind several times, but nothing made any kind of sense to her. She had the feeling that if she was paying full attention over the last few months, it would have been easy to understand. Every so often she'd catch bits about special powers, Cinder, a cover story dealing with Haven and the aftermath of Beacon. Instead, Yang spent those months in a clouded state between existing and living. Everything was just white noise to her. Perhaps it was because she thought she knew everything regarding what happened at Beacon? But now, she was certain that she only had the most basic grasp of things. Yang didn't like what that implied. Either she was so far gone that everything in that timeframe didn't matter, or she was being kept in the dark.

 _Or perhaps a combination of the two_ she thought.

The most confusing aspect of this was the fact that her father kept blaming Qrow. He originally left on a mission once Ruby recovered. Since then, he popped in from time to time, but never more than a day or two. Ozpin was one of the few friends her uncle had. With him missing, Qrow had taken it upon himself to become the new face of Beacon. That involved plenty of travel between the kingdoms. Yang figured this was due to the investigation that was quickly going nowhere. Qrow's most recent trip to Patch left him in town for only a few hours, then it was off to Atlas. She seemed to recall him speaking to her father and promising he'd be back today. There was something about a surprise, but she had no clue what that was supposed to mean. Surely the surprise couldn't have involved Ruby leaving home, could it?

As if it was on cue, there was a knock at the front door.

"It's open!" Tai shouted, as he placed his full attention on the door. _Well this isn't going to be a warm welcome_ Yang thought bitterly, as her uncle stepped into their home. He was carrying a duffel bag with him and had a big smile on his face. Yet, before he could get a greeting out, Tai was already in his face shouting, "You son of a bitch!" All parties in the room, not named Taiyang Xiao Long, were taken aback by the uncharacteristic outburst. This even included Zwei, who had suddenly decided this was not the best place for a dog, and elected to leave the room. Despite everything, Qrow remained his usual, nonchalant self and just shrugged. "No arguments here. She has her moments." Qrow was about to add-on to that comment, when he noticed how deathly serious Tai was. Setting the bag down on a nearby couch, Qrow asked, "So what'd I do this time? I'm getting the sense this isn't about a bar tab." Tai was far from a joking mood however, as he thrust Ruby's letter into his hands. "I don't know. You read that and tell me." Qrow simply lifted an eyebrow out of curiosity as he turned his attention from Tai to the letter he now held.

* * *

Dad,

I really don't know how to begin. I suppose "I'm sorry" might be the best way to start.  
I have to leave home. I'll likely be in Vale by the time you read this.

I've spoken with Uncle Qrow a couple of times in the last few months. From what he's told me, it sounds like things are getting really bad. It seems like no one is able to trust each other anymore. I can't sit here in Patch doing nothing. You and Mom always taught me to help others. It seems like the world needs help understanding what happened at Beacon. I also need to understand what happened. Cinder is still out there and I constantly worry that she's going to do this again. According to what I've heard, I might be the only one who can stop her. I need to know why she is doing this, and I also need to learn more about the powers I apparently have.

I won't be alone. I've already spoken to Jaune. Ren and Nora are coming as well. Pyrrha's death hit all of them hard. Jaune feels like he could have done more. He constantly blames himself. The others also feel like they'd be able to do more good by helping get to the bottom of everything. I only wish I could have waited long enough for Yang to recover. I hoped the two of us could have gotten our team back together. However, there's no time. I've got a sense of dread deep down and I feel like if I don't act now it'll be too late.

Yang, don't blame yourself. I never did. You needed time, we just didn't have enough. It seems like you're starting to come around. I'm not going to ask you to do something you're not ready for, yet I do need your help. I need info and you seem to know people. See if you can learn anything about Cinder. If all goes well, I hope to be back home in a month or two. Once I'm back in Patch, we can compare notes and figure out our next move.

Take care of yourselves. I'm coming home. I promise.

-Ruby

PS: "Some assembly required?" Really? Even by your standards, that was pretty bad Yang.

* * *

Yang winced as Qrow read the last part of the letter. Ruby calling out that terrible joke had told Yang she really was awake the whole time. Why didn't Ruby speak with her? Yang wanted to roll back the clock and do her last encounter with her sister over again. Meanwhile, Qrow was just amused at that last bit. "Well, either Yang is getting a personality again or Ruby found a really nice bookshelf." Tai however, wasn't having Qrow's jokes. "No" he said firmly. "For once in your life, you're not deflecting a serious situation with humor. My youngest daughter is missing. She flat-out said in her letter that you've talked to her. Now you're talking to me. Where is she Qrow?" Tai was no longer yelling, however the anger and frustration in his voice was still there. Qrow was about to discuss the situation, but another voice made itself known.

"Fifty lien says that Rubes is heading to Mistral. Cinder and her team claimed to be from Haven. It's the only place that makes sense."

Both men turned their attention to Yang. "I'm an amputee, not deaf. I'm also far from stupid. I know my attitude the last few months would suggest otherwise, but I've caught bits and pieces of what you guys have discussed. This is the first day, in ages, I've got some sort of clarity." Motioning towards her lost limb with her head, Yang continued. "I feel this injury gives me the right to know the truth. I almost died at Beacon. It's bad enough that I can't trust my partner. Don't make me feel like I can't trust my family."

Yang was done saying her piece. Qrow looked like he was ready to spill the beans, but Tai wasn't having any of it. "You're not doing this Qrow!" he nearly screamed as he pointed sharply in his face. "Yang is not getting involved. The truth drove Raven insane. It got Summer killed. Now my youngest daughter is out there continuing her mother's work." Suddenly, Tai's attitude completely shifted, as he fell to his knees and completely broke down. Yang was taken aback by this. She knew how badly the death of her stepmother affected her father. However, this was on a completely different level. "Don't take her away from me Qrow" was all he could keep saying between sobs.

It was actually starting to scare Yang. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to know now.

Qrow eventually managed to get Tai off the floor and on the couch. He was careful to move his bag before doing so and set it on the floor. Hearing a metallic clang told Yang that whatever was in there had some weight to it. In fact, she started to have her suspicions about what it might be. However, it was best to wait and let her father calm down first. After about five minutes, Tai had calmed down enough for Qrow to actually be able to talk to him. The mood in his voice was sombre as he spoke. "You know I have no intent to take your girls away Tai. But, you also know that we ourselves were all involved the moment Summer entered our lives. You know the truth behind everything. In the end, Ruby's destined to follow Summer. History is repeating. Ruby's team, like our own before hers, became involved once the Beacon initiation paired them all together. Granted, considering the current situation, the heiress and the moody one at least have a chance to get out. Pyrrha's teammates? They're going to wish they stayed home." Pausing for a moment, Qrow looked at his niece before turning his attention back to his friend. "Yet, I'm afraid Yang won't have that luxury her own partners are getting. Even if Yang wasn't on that team, her involvement would have been inevitable. We both know she wouldn't let her sister face this alone."

Meanwhile, Yang was growing more confused with each passing moment. All this talk about destiny and teams being connected to their leader was starting to hurt her head. She still wasn't sure what any of this was truly about. However, she knew her uncle was right. If Ruby was involved, then for better or for worse she would be there for her. Eventually, Tai had calmed down enough and excused himself. He needed to lay down a bit and wrap his head around everything. It had been a rather eventful morning for the man. Sighing, Qrow now turned his attention to his niece. Picking up his bag, he walked over to the table and set it down. "Well, this is far from how I saw my morning going" he said with a nervous chuckle. Raising an eyebrow, Yang told her uncle, "Well, there's a part of me that doubts that. Taking everything into consideration, I'm guessing you knew Ruby would be leaving sooner or later. You just didn't expect it to be now." Qrow was in the kitchen and apparently looking for something. Eventually, he let out an annoyed grunt and settled for a coffee mug and a rather cutesy looking, cartoonish cup depicting a panda. "I've known your father for nearly 25 years. You'd think by now I'd remember he doesn't have shot glasses." Shaking her head, Yang said, "And I've known you for 18 years. I don't think now is the time to be attempting to change the subject."

By now, Qrow was back at the table. Reaching into his bag, he produced the first item he brought with him: a bottle of Vacuo Rum. Qrow proceeded to pour a small amount into the larger panda cup, and was about to push it towards Yang, but after thinking about it he pulled it back towards him and filled it. He then proceeded to pour the original, smaller amount of booze into the mug and pushed that towards Yang. Meanwhile, Yang just sat there confused and looking at the mug. "You can't be serious. You know I don't drink." Laughing, Qrow grabbed the panda cup as he sat and proceeded to down about half of it in one gulp. "Like hell you don't. Didn't you get busted making girly drinks for the rest of the dorm at Signal in your final year?" Blushing slightly, Yang attempted to defend her drink choice. "Hey! A Strawberry Sunrise is NOT a girly drink!" Nodding a bit, in a rather sarcastic manner, Qrow said, "I suppose you're right. Men do drink them." Qrow took another sip of his rum before adding, "Gay men." Groaning, Yang just shook her head as she grabbed the offered mug. "You are the absolute worst." While it was true that Yang was now legally old enough to drink, it was something she had yet to actually try. Even when she was going through a "juvenile delinquent" phase as her uncle called it, she still didn't overdo it or get totally smashed. Taking a small sip, Yang noted that it had a bit more of a burn than any of the cocktails she had previously tried. Despite that, she actually rather enjoyed it. With a smirk, Qrow said, "Much better than orange juice, créme de fraises and grenadine." Setting the mug down, it was now Yang's turn to laugh. "Sooooo, how do you know what goes in a Strawberry Sunrise?" she asked in a sing-song voice. Qrow choked on his drink for a moment. Setting it down, he told his niece in a mock questioning tone, "I went though a phase?"

The two of them laughed together for a moment. Yang suddenly stopped however. "You're doing it again. You're getting us off track." Finishing off his drink, Qrow set down the cup and reached back into the bag. "I swear it's not intentional. We've got quite a bit to discuss and you're going to have plenty of questions." This time, Qrow brought out a set of tools. "So what else have you got in there, Drunkle Qrow?" Yang asked. Normally, Qrow didn't care for his niece's nickname, but he was willing to let it slide. He wasn't sure what he had missed while he was gone, but whatever it was he was at least happy to see Yang slowly becoming her old self again. He could still hear an edge in her voice that she previously didn't carry, but at least he now knew she hadn't completely shut down. "The last item in this bag is going to change everything for you" Qrow told her, as he pulled it out.

It was exactly what Yang suspected: sitting in front of her was a prosthetic arm. Yang had seen a few up close following her injury. She was far from an expert on them, but as far as she could tell there was something different about this one. It was something Yang desperately needed, but it was also something she dreaded. She wasn't looking forward to heading back to Vale for surgery to attach it. As that thought crossed her mind however, she remembered the tools her uncle pulled out. Seeming to sense what she was about to ask, Qrow explained just what was going on. "I called in a ton of favors once it was clear you weren't getting an arm anytime soon. Turns out you're a prime candidate for this one. It's a brand new prototype designed for people who have less severe limb injuries. You're going to be the first user outside of testing." Yang was a bit skeptical once she heard the words less severe. In her mind, losing half her arm was pretty damn severe. "Define less severe for me" she said. "Right now, I'm having a bit of trouble wrapping my head around that." Nodding, Qrow simply pointed at her elbow. "Well you've got part of your arm left." He then pointed at her shoulder. "Had you lost the whole thing, that would have required a far more invasive surgery. I'm sure you remember seeing Ironwood in the hospital." Yang hadn't really spoken to the man, but she did remember meeting the general shortly after waking up. The extent of his injuries from a mission that had went very sour, wasn't really public knowledge. Qrow thought it would be a good idea to bring him in to meet with Yang. Looking back she knew the two of them meant well, but the gesture completely backfired. For the first few days after the meeting, Yang could only envision her right half being totally artificial. It wasn't until she saw a far more normal prosthetic that she calmed down.

Meanwhile, Qrow continued telling her about the arm. "I'm not great with the science behind it. What I do know is that all prosthetics, prior to this one, required some sort of surgery. Either it would be grafted onto what was left, or in the case of Ironwood even more would need to be cut away before they could add it in." The thought of doctors needing to cut off more of her body make Yang shudder. "This arm is brand new tech. Rather than grafting and bonding tissue to metal, it uses electrical impulses to interact with the remaining nerves where the damage occurred." Yang was actually impressed, but then a thought occurred to her. Smirking, she said "They made you memorize all that, didn't they?" Qrow just poured himself more rum as he confirmed it. "Yep. I have no idea what the hell I just said. All I know is that Doctor Polendina assured me it works." The name caught Yang off guard. "Polendina?" she asked. "Would that make him..." Qrow nodded as he sipped more booze. "Yeah. He's the guy that built your friend. Penny apparently would never stop talking to him about Ruby. Once he heard you were injured and that you were her sister, he put his team to work right away on this thing. Ruby must have left some impression on that girl, as well as the old man, if he was willing to jump right on this project. In fact, he's also got a combat design for you in the works. It's just going to take more time. Apparently, adding a shot gauntlet, into an arm made for a hand to hand fighter is extremely complex." Hearing that got Yang far more excited than she had been in some time. Despite that, she managed to keep her composure.

"Anyway, enough talk. Let's get this thing on you." Nodding, Yang went to remove the bandages on her arm. Meanwhile, Qrow had the prosthetic in his hands and helped Yang ease her arm into it. Yang quickly noticed that it didn't fit the way she imagined it would. That's when Qrow reached around the back towards a spot near her elbow. "Got to flip the switch so to speak. They said this part might sting." Yang couldn't see what he was doing, but she definitely felt it when the opening closed around her arm and hit her with an electrical shock. Once the inital discomfort from getting shocked faded, she attempted to move her new arm.

Nothing.

Before she could ask, Qrow already had a very small screwdriver in his hand. He inserted it into a well hidden hole, then with a small twist, had a small panel on the wrist open. He then used the screwdriver to flip what Yang assumed was a power switch, before then using it on a nearby screw. "Ok. It's a prototype and at its core, it's still basic. You're not going to feel anything, so I'll need you to act as if you're moving your fingers. I know that may be easier said than done, but you've got to try to do that." Yang knew exactly what he was referring to: the occasional, odd sensation that her missing limb was there and working. Right now she wasn't getting that sensation, so Yang hoped she was doing it right. As she did this, Qrow used the screwdriver to slowly turn a screw in the arm.

After what felt like the longest minute of her life, the artificial hand finally came to life. Yang wanted to scream out in joy, but it was just as her uncle said. She had movement and a working arm again, but she felt nothing. It led to an odd mix of sadness and happiness for Yang. She was recovering, but she knew things couldn't ever be the same.

Qrow could see the mix of emotions on her face. "Hey, this one is temporary" he told her. "I can't tell you how long it'll be, but I can tell you that you'll likely have the permanent one before the hospital even lines you up for their own, subpar arm." Shutting the access panel, Qrow handed her the screwdriver. "Don't lose that. You'll need that to hit the power switch and to calibrate it. Now pay attention. This will apply to your permanent replacement as well. The power source is self charging. They last for about three to five years before it needs to be fully replaced. Set the arm to standby and remove it if you don't anticipate needing it. That hidden button on the back of the elbow will allow you to remove the arm. Hold it in for about ten seconds and it'll pop right off. Overuse will leave the power source temporarily drained. If that happens, you'll need at least 24 hours for it to be recharged."

While she was still down about the lack of feeling and sensation, Yang was still quite impressed. Atlas definitely lived up to its reputation as the world leader in robotics and prosthetics. Since this was apparently an advanced prototype, there was one question at the back of Yang's mind. As she continued to move the hand and test her arm, Yang said, "Let's say that hypothetically speaking, I get into trouble. Is this arm suitable for combat?" Qrow raised an eyebrow at the question. They hadn't even reached the subjects they needed to talk about. Yet, he could sense that Yang was itching to get back into the fight so she could help Ruby.

The problem was she wasn't ready.

"Ideally? No. For your fighting style I'd avoid hand to hand combat. It's advanced enough to allow you to go through the motions and practice, but if you get into a full on brawl I can't promise that it won't be damaged." Yang frowned. She was about to say something, but she then remembered her uncle's exact words. "You said hand to hand. What about melee?" Yang then wished she didn't ask, because she could see Qrow get a bit excited over this. Like her younger sister, he was a weapon nut. "Oh, you have so many options Yang!" he said in a very uncharacteristic voice. "The shell of the arm that protects the inner workings is a brand new design. Polycarbonate coated in a thin layer of Maraging Steel. It has some heat resistance and will resist fractures. Unlike a basic prosthetic, it will stand up in melee combat. In a pinch, I suppose you could punch someone in the face really hard. But it's like I said. I wouldn't recommend it." Yang couldn't help laughing at the excitability he was showing. "Why do I get the feeling that you thought of this thing as a weapon, just so you could remember all that?" Qrow's smirk told her that he was guilty as charged. While she preferred her fists, she could use some basic weapons in a pinch. She just needed to figure out what she'd be using.

Yang felt she had enough time to test the prosthetic. Now it was time for a real test. Eyeing the bottle of rum, Yang made a motion to pick it up. She managed to get it about two inches off the table before she shattered it. With a sheepish grin, Yang simply said, "Oops!" Qrow was far less amused, but he wasn't angry. "Oh, don't worry Yang. Vacuo Rum doesn't run about 700 lien a bottle" he said sarcastically. Yang nearly fell over at the revelation of just how expensive her uncle's favorite drink was.

As the two of them cleaned up the glass shards and spilled booze, Yang turned the attention back to a more serious subject. "Ok. We've got the arm out of the way. Now we've got to move on to the elephant in the room. What exactly is going on with Ruby?" Sitting back down, Qrow looked completely serious now, despite having half a bottle of rum in him. "Honestly? I don't even know where to begin. It's going to take at least a couple of hours to go over everything. Possibly longer." Yang was about to let him have it over stalling again, but she could see it in his eyes. Whatever he was about to tell her, it was extremely serious. She could almost see the years of hardship in them as he asked her a question.

"When you were a kid, did Tai ever tell you the story of the Four Maidens?"

* * *

 **AN: This was the longest chapter so far. Managed to get unexpected, back to back days off. That allowed me plenty of time to write.**

 **First, I wish to address something. I want to get this out of the way since I expect it to come up. Namely, I want to address Raven. We do see her in the Volume 2 stinger. She meets with Yang, mentions that they have much to talk about. Then...nothing.**

 **I have no doubt that there's a plan there. However, the fact that Volume 3 does absolutely nothing to address it, not to mention contradicts it, leaves it very hard to factor that meeting in. There's also the fact that Beacon is intact and that Yang has her arm. This fic is already going to be in AU territory once Volume 4 is released. Therefore, as far as I'm concerned that meeting never happened. Yang saw Raven on the train and that was it. Now that's not to say I won't use the meeting in some fashion. Right now, the main theory getting bounced around is that it was a dream. I may play with that later on.**

 **Ok then.**

 **-Prosthetics: A big part of the chapter length comes from the info dump regarding Yang's arm. Once again, there's not much to go on from the actual show. Using what we know about Ironwood and Mercury, I decided that their prosthetics were older models that were surgically attached, either due to extremely severe injuries (Ironwood), or simply because they had to somehow be grafted on (Mercury with his bloody legs in the flashback). Yang's is a new, removable prototype. Since this is future fantasy/sci-fi, I figured the tech would be advanced enough for what I described. I also did research into materials that could potentially be used. Realistically, would Polycarbonate and Maraging Steel work? I honestly have no clue. Plastics are used for real world prosthetics. Maraging Steel is used in the aircraft industry. It's also used for firing pins in automatic weapons, as well as fencing foils. I honestly don't know how heavy or lightweight it is, but it struck me as something the parts of the arm could potentially be coated with. As far as people within the story go, they won't suspect it's removable.**

 **-Yang: Even I'm noticing I've got her treading that line between Old Yang and Serious Yang. It was easy enough to show her as broken early on, but I'm finding it increasingly hard to keep that going, mainly due to how much of a fun character she was prior to the end of Volume 3. If anything, I'm thinking it'll mainly be family and friends that bring her old side out. When it comes down to business, we'll see far less of that.**

 **-Maidens, Guardians, Warriors: I'm covering this here to avoid another big info dump in story. These are terms I'm going to start tossing around frequently. We already know about Maidens. Guardians will be an interchangeable term. It will refer to those allied with/protecting a Maiden or Warrior (such as Qrow), or those who were somehow identified as being able to receive the power of a Maiden (such as Pyrrha). Unofficially folks have been calling Ruby a Silver-Eyed Warrior. I find that to be a mouthful. Since the song _This Will Be The Day_ directly refers to a warrior running wild, I'm thinking Monty/Rooster Teeth have had the actual name in front of us the whole time. Therefore, Ruby and Summer are simply Warriors.**

 **-Strawberry Sunrise: Yes, it's a real drink. No, I don't condone underage drinking. Go get two ounces of crème de fraises, four ounces of orange juice and half an ounce of grenadine. Add the ingredients, making sure the grenadine goes in last. Just don't ask me how it tastes. My drinking days are long over and even if they weren't, I wouldn't be caught dead with a fruity cocktail. Past me will have a Captain and Coke, thanks.**

 **-Gay men: No offense intended. Hell, I'm a Bumblebee supporter! Wait...did I just drop a hint? ^_~**  
 **Was shooting for humor and it just seemed like something Qrow would say :P**

 **Work will begin on Chapter 6 shortly. Shooting for midweek at the earliest. Favorite, follow, review and TELL YOUR FRIENDS!**


	6. Reunion, Part 1

Chapter 6  
"Reunion (Part 1)"

* * *

City of Vale, ten days ago

* * *

"It's quiet a sight, isn't it?"

Yang was completely dumbfounded as she stepped off the ferry. The last time she had been in Vale, she was in a hospital in the "Upper Class" district. When her family had left for Patch, they did so via the western docks. This time around, Yang and her uncle stood in the heart of the Commercial District. It was the first time she had actually laid eyes upon Beacon since it's destruction, and it was just as Qrow had described. The top of Beacon Tower was shattered. On top, a Grimm Dragon, frozen like a statue. Even from this distance, she could see several Nevermores circling the ruins. It was almost like they owned the place.

 _Correction_ she told herself. _They DO own it._

Six months ago, the thought of so many Grimm in one place would have excited her. Just a nuisance waiting to be exterminated. Now? Yang now knew exactly how dangerous they truly were. Seeing a place like Mountain Glenn was one thing. Witnessing the Fall of Beacon and actually seeing Grimm so close to a major city was completely different. "How has Vale managed to stay standing?" she asked, as they began to walk away from the docks. Qrow was leading the way. As always, his answer was quick and to the point.

"That's simple. They haven't attacked."

The answer caught her off guard. "What?" was all Yang could manage to say. She couldn't believe it. Qrow saw the look on her face and elaborated. "Think back to those two trips you took to Mountain Glenn. What did Oobleck tell you guys about the Grimm in that area?" Yang had to think for a moment. Team RWBY's first trip was when they were investigating the White Fang. Their second trip was during the Merlot Industries incident. Yang racked her brain trying to come up with the answer. She remembered speaking with Oobleck about why she became a huntress. He had similar conversations with Weiss and Blake. As for Ruby, the two of them observed some ancient Grimm in the distance. Then it hit her.

"They're waiting."

Qrow didn't say anything, not because he didn't want to, but because he didn't have to. The Vytal Festival was the spark that brought them to Beacon. Now, with the school gone, the Grimm were repeating the process. Aside from some younger, weaker Grimm that had moved into the damaged parts of the Commercial and Residential Districts, the majority were gathering at Beacon. It was a ticking time bomb. All it would take was one more spark, another situation like the Vytal Festival, then Vale would be another Mountain Glenn.

To say it was unsettling was a massive understatement.

Yang looked around to make sure there wasn't anyone within earshot of what she was about to say. Even so, she still kept her voice down. "What I don't understand is why you don't just get the Spring, Summer and Winter Maidens, and then send them to kick their asses." Qrow sighed. Yang took the existence of the Maidens and The Warrior fairly well. Much better than Raven did he thought bitterly. Despite everything however, Yang still had a slight tendency to look at problems as being easily solved by brute force. Granted, it was no longer in the vein of rush headfirst into the situation, but she still had a 'throw numbers at the problem' mentality. "It's just not that simple" Qrow told his niece as they walked down the sidewalk. "Remember what I said? Those facts? They fly in the face of thousands of years of history. As long as people believe everything is going the way it should, the way it always has, they won't panic. What do you think mass hysteria on a worldwide scale would do? Plus, they're powerful, but they aren't unbeatable. We don't need to draw the attention of more people like Cinder." Yang was about to say something, but then a thought crossed her mind. She suddenly realized why her uncle's explanation about the Maidens started with the legend, and ended with the deaths of Amber and Pyrrha.

"You have no idea who the other three are, do you?"

Qrow had wondered how long it would take Yang to finally realize he didn't know the identities of all the Maidens. "It was one of Ozpin's annoying rules. His inner circle consisted of James, Glynda and myself. We each knew the identity and location of a single person." Qrow made sure not to say the word Maiden, while they crossed the street and walked by several people. "No overlap. The only one who knew of all four was Ozpin. The only time we would learn about the others was if there was direct threat to them. My assignment was Fall. Glynda has Spring, James has Winter." As he said that last part, a lightbulb went off in Yang's head. Qrow seemed to know what was coming, so he cut her off before she could ask. "No. It's not Winter Schnee. By that logic, everyone named Winter or Summer is a Maiden. In any case, the general rule Oz had was this: if you don't need to know the identity of a Maiden, they you simply wouldn't know it. Realistically, I can't say if it helped or hurt. Cinder still somehow found out who Amber was." This information troubled Yang. "It's sad that Ozpin couldn't even trust you guys enough to tell you everything" she said. Shaking his head, Qrow told her, "It was less about trust and more about keeping everything compartmentalized. If one person aside from Ozpin got compromised, then only one target was at risk. I didn't always agree with that choice, but it apparently worked for a long time. I still don't know if he's dead or alive. If he's alive however, you can bet your ass that when this is all over, we're going to have a long talk about possibly doing things differently moving forward."

Yang just nodded in agreement. Having only known about the Maidens, The Warrior and their Guardians for about three weeks, she couldn't really say much on the matter. All she could really do as a newly minted Guardian was ask questions, learn more and prepare herself for eventually meeting up with Ruby. Deep down, Yang actually had a feeling that despite all she had learned that Qrow was still keeping some info from her. However, it wasn't the time or place to push the matter. Even after three weeks, it was still a ton to take in. Tai still wasn't happy about how things were turning out, but he had at least agreed to help get Yang back into fighting shape. At this point, Yang figured she'd learn more when she was ready.

Turning a street corner, Qrow's attitude changed. Laughing a bit, he told his niece, "Enough about all that. It's time to put the more troubling matters aside. Don't forget why we really came to Vale. You didn't get a proper 18th birthday party. Let's fix that!" As he led the way to his favorite bar in Vale, Yang stopped in her tracks, took one look at the sign and realized the sole reason why he liked the place so much.

"The Crow Bar? You've got to be kidding me."

* * *

10 minutes later

* * *

"Hey! What'd I tell you about those girly drinks?"  
"It's called pacing yourself! You should try it sometime!"  
"Never in a million years!"  
"Whatever you say Mr. 'I don't know what's in a Strawberry Sunrise!'"  
"I said it was a phase!"

* * *

30 more minutes later

* * *

"So then I shed, 'Yeah? You should schee me when I'm clog-dancing topless!'"  
"NO ONE WANTS TO SEE THAT UNCLE QROW!"

* * *

20 more minutes later

* * *

"So I guess what he was sheaing was that he lives 'the pug life.'"  
"Dammit, Yang. You have no white to jush my dokes ever again!"

* * *

10? 20 minutes after that?

* * *

"I couldn't delp myshelf. I jush kept staring at that guy in the men's room. He was so handshom that it may have turned me gay."  
"I'm pretty shur you were the only guy in there."  
"What are you sheaing?"  
"Were you looking at the mirror?"  
"Couldn't nav been. I wash at a urinal."  
"Are you shur it wasn't the sink?"  
"...dammit."

* * *

Nearly two and a half hours after their arrival

* * *

Following her uncle's misadventure with the bathroom sink, Yang decided that was a good stopping point for her. She was definitely tipsy, but she wasn't completely obliterated like Qrow. While she had quickly grown to like Vacuo Rum, Yang decided one of them had to be the responsible adult and stuck to her usual drink of choice. As for Qrow, if it came in a bottle, then it eventually made it to his glass. By this point, Qrow was in another corner of the bar, leading the other patrons in an impromptu song:

 _In the store, there's a teddy._  
 _Little straps, like spaghetti._  
 _It holds me so tight, like handcuffs at night._  
 _Walkin' 'round in women's underwear._

Yang just shook her head as she sipped on her water. Taiyang had told her plenty of stories about how he was such a depressed drunk. Hell, she had seen it herself at some points. However, her father also had stories of a younger, happier Qrow. He apparently still drank way too much, but instead of depression, Tai had described a man who just loved being the life of the party. It was actually a bit odd seeing her uncle act like he was 20 years younger, with not a care in the world. Yang wasn't entirely sure what prompted the change. Was it because he was trying to play the part of the cool uncle? Was it the fact that he actually had an audience? Whatever the case may have been, it got Yang thinking about what may have made Qrow change in the first place. In recent weeks, Yang had heard hints regarding why her mother left. Something about the truth about the Maidens pushing her over the edge. Qrow and Tai didn't elaborate, but they didn't need to. Yang's own world view was shattered once she was brought into the loop. Unlike her mother however, Yang loved stories about adventures growing up. She figured that made it easier for her to accept. Raven however, was apparently well-read regarding world history and religious. Yang could easily see such a person having their mind shattered, if everything they believed in or knew about turned out to be a lie. She could see such an event forcing her uncle into a shell. Summer's death, years later, likely only made it worse.

Then it hit her: that's precisely what Yang was starting to do before she snapped out of it.

Yang still had her moments when she felt down in the dumps. Slowly, but surely however, she was recovering. Seeing the parallel between her, and her uncle however made Yang realize that, unlike her father, Qrow never really did recover. She figured that the two of them trying to one up each other, with their stories and terrible jokes, was what ultimately got him to drop his guard a bit. Yang made a mental note to try to have a serious discussion with her uncle in the near future.

As she took another drink, Yang caught something out of the corner of her eye. It was just outside the bar, and as she turned her attention to it, she nearly choked on her drink. From the angle, Yang could only see her back. The woman wore a white dress shirt that exposed her midriff, black pants with gray trim and a black pair of boots. She had long, flowing black hair and wore a black bow. There was not a single doubt in Yang's mind.

Blake had just walked by the bar.

Yang spent the last several months hating Blake for running. Honestly, she had no idea what she was going to say if and when she caught up to her, but she wasn't going to lose the opportunity. Signaling the bartender over, she said, "I've got to run. Hunter emergency! Qrow's got the tab." Stepping on the floor for the first time in over two hours, Yang noted that while her vision wasn't too terribly blurred, and her speech no longer slurred, she wasn't exactly light on her feet. She couldn't afford to lose Blake and did her best to ignore the dizzy feeling. "Hey! You sure he's going to be ok without you?!" the bartender shouted as Yang stumbled to the exit. Looking over, she saw that Qrow was totally oblivious and singing another bawdy song with his fellow drunks. Waving him off, Yang shouted back, "He'll live! If he skips out on the bill, send it to Signal!"

Ignoring the protests from the bartender, Yang stepped out and quickly looked around. It was starting to get dark, and for a moment she thought she lost Blake. Then she saw it: a flash of white turning the corner, moving away from the boardwalk. Half running, half stumbling, Yang drew several curious looks from people as she went by. She had no doubt some of it was due to her obviously drunken movement, while others were likely looking at her arm out of shock. Now wasn't the time to worry about her appearance however. She had to catch up to Blake.

As she turned the corner, Yang got further confirmation that it was indeed Blake. While she hadn't seen her face yet, she could see a scar on the left side of her lower back. It was, without doubt, the result of the wound Adam gave her at Beacon. Actually seeing the scar filled Yang with anger. Even if she never patched things up with Blake, Adam sure as hell would have much to answer for.

Drawing a bit closer, Yang slowed her pace a bit, and as much as she wanted to shout out Blake's name, she refrained from doing so. She was so close to getting answers. The last thing Yang wanted to do was spook her. If Blake decided to run, that would be it. Yang would not be able to catch Blake in her current condition. Eventually, Blake turned a corner down an alleyway. Yang quickened her pace a bit, as she did her best to keep from stumbling. The alley itself was a dead-end. Aside from a fire escape, the only way out, was the way in. At the end of the alley was Blake. Yang was about to shout, but soon noticed Blake wasn't moving. She was just standing there. Yang slowly made her way towards the still figure. Deep down, she already knew what happened. Reaching out to touch the figure only confirmed it, as it disappeared.

Yang had been duped by one of Blake's shadow clones.

Frustration had filled Yang at this point. Without warning, she turned and punched a nearby dumpster. Old habits had kicked in however, and she did so with her prosthetic. It wasn't an overly hard punch. Not enough to damage the limb, but definitely enough to put a clean hole into the dumpster. Her augmented strength, resulting from the combination of her Semblance and her arm, had a far greater effect than expected. It was one of the few times Yang was glad her right hand was no longer flesh and blood. If it was, then there was no doubt in her mind that even with her aura, she'd have broken every bone in her hand. Briefly, Yang looked up at the fire escape ladder and considered giving chase. However, Blake had more than enough time to get over a building or two, then drop down. Yang had to accept defeat this time.

As she began to turn around to walk bar to the bar however, that was the moment everything went to shit.

Without warning, Yang had been punched right in the face. Blinded for the moment, Yang went straight on the defensive. Her first reaction was to swing back, but all she caught was air. As soon as she missed, she felt a hand grab her by the hair, pull hard and send her flying face first into a wall. Yang wasn't sure what was dazing her more at the moment as she hit the ground. It was either the booze, or the concussion she just got. What she did know however, was that in the morning her hangover would be sent directly from hell.

Getting herself to her knees, Yang thankfully noted that her attacker was holding off for the moment. As her vision cleared up, she noted it was a rather large, faunus man with wolf-like facial features. In his left hand, he held a large chunk of Yang's hair, which had apparently been ripped out when he threw her. The man just let it drift to the ground as he simply said in a nonchalant, uncaring voice, "Oops!"

Yang wanted to charge in right at that moment, however she already learned that lesson the hard way. Instead, she attempted to bide her time. As she looked over the man, she quickly noted she had seen the tattoos on his left arm once before. Eventually, she remembered where: it was on a train, in Mountain Glenn. The man before her was one of Adam's top lieutenants in the White Fang. Yang didn't have many options. She figured her best one would be attempting to lure him into making a mistake. "So, it's Adam's right hand man" she said, as she got to her knees and wiped away the blood from her busted lip. "Why do they call people like you the 'right hand man' anyway? Is that the hand you guys use when you're jerking your boss off?" To drive the point home, Yang began making the motion with her left hand, while whistling and winking at the lieutenant.

The tactic seemed to work, because before she could blink he rushed at her and threw a sloppy left hand. Despite being a little unsteady on her feet, Yang managed to easily duck the blow. She needed this guy to stay down, so despite her better judgement, she threw a hard right. She connected solidly with his jaw, causing his aura to flash away. By pure luck, she hadn't damaged her hand, and was positive he'd be out cold a second later. Instead, the lieutenant merely smirked at her as he spit out a broken tooth. Yang went completely wide-eyed as he no sold that attack.

"Oh, for fu..."

She never finished expressing her shock. The man quickly had her by the throat, and pinned against the wall. Before she could even attempt to break free, she had been punched in the gut four times. She could smell his foul breath, as he practically growled at her, "Where is Belladonna?" Yang started to get the sense that Blake wasn't avoiding her, she was avoiding this guy. Even despite everything, the last thing she would ever do is sell out her partner.

"Go to hell!"

All that did was earn Yang another punch to the face. She wasn't sure if her nose was broken or not, but she could feel the blood dripping from it. Between the booze, the multiple blows to the face and the lack of oxygen, Yang could feel herself starting to black out. While her Semblance had given her a small power boost, it still wasn't enough to break free. Soon, it wouldn't matter however. As the man continued choking Yang, he produced a simple dust firearm and pressed the barrel to Yang's head. Even her remaining aura wouldn't be enough to stop this at point-blank range.

 _This is it. This is how I die._

Yang mentally prepared herself for the end of her life and closed her eyes. Instead, she heard the sickening sound of a blade meeting flesh, as the lieutenant started to make choking sounds. The gun had gone off unexpectedly, but thankfully the attack threw off his aim enough to send the bullet into the wall as opposed to Yang's head. It dropped to the ground as his grip on Yang's neck loosened. Falling back to her knees, Yang took several greedy breaths of air, as she attempted to recover. Opening her eyes, Yang couldn't quite make out her savior, but she could see what had to be a dagger plunged into the side of his neck. As her vision cleared up, Yang was soon able to make out the hilt of a weapon she knew. It was Gambol Shroud. At that point, a thought crossed Yang's mind. _Wait a moment. Gambol Shroud isn't a dagger._ Before she could consider possible reasons for the change, a voice confirmed the weapon's owner when she told the lieutenant, "Attacking her was your last mistake Keir!"

That was the voice of Blake Belladonna.

Blake let the lifeless body of the lieutenant drop to the ground between them. Yang's vision was still blurred as she turned her attention to Keir. This was literally the first time she had seen something other than a Grimm kill a person. Part of her felt sick to her stomach. It was a major mix of emotions. Yang wasn't sure if she should thank Blake, or seriously question the fact that she had just killed a man without a second thought.

 _Now's not the time. It was him or you._

Yang didn't know if she really wanted to justify it so easily. Right now however, they had to get out of there. Almost on cue, Blake's hand came into her line of vision just as it finally cleared up. Reaching out with her right hand, Yang heard an audible, shocked gasp as Blake got her first good look at the prosthetic. Feeling a need to attempt to lighten the mood, Yang looked up at Blake and was about to say something, but only proceeded to return the shocked gasp.

The woman in front of her was definitely Blake Belladonna. Yang had pictured her face several times the past few months. She had even seen it in her dreams on more than one occasion. However, this wasn't the face she expected. On her right cheek, Blake now had a very faint, almost unnoticeable facial scar. It actually didn't look that bad. It resembled a training injury far more than a wound taken in a life or death battle. Had it made full contact, it would have ran straight from her human ear, to her nose. That wasn't what concerned Yang however.

What concerned Yang the most, was the eyepatch over Blake's left eye.

The edge of that scar, which peeked out from the top of the eyepatch, was far more noticeable. The scar itself was reminiscent of the one Weiss had. The difference was, the scar Weiss had, was on the left side of her face. Blake's ran at a forty-five degree angle. That left no doubt about the outcome: whoever attacked Blake had taken her eye. Not even Gambol Shroud was left untouched. Blake was missing the sheath. The weapon itself had a broken blade, and resembled a dagger more than a katana. Instead, Blake carried a simple leather sheath designed for a dagger on her belt.

The sight rendered Yang speechless. She had spent nearly six months of her life feeling betrayed. Those feelings went out the window. She didn't agree with Blake's choice to leave, but she also knew she didn't deserve this. Blake finally broke the silence between them. "Well, at least the worst ones are out the way. When we eventually sit down to talk, try not to get too shocked. I've picked up quite the collection from Adam the last few months." Yang should have known. She was about to ask a question when a pair of voices shouting from just outside the alley got their attention.

"The gunshot came from over here!"  
"You think he got her?  
"It was only one bullet. I would think she's dead, but you can never be sure with that bitch."  
"No chances then. Weapons ready. If she's standing, make sure she dies this time!"

The fear in Blake's lone remaining eye was clear. "There's no time to waste. Grab his gun and get up the fire escape!" Yang didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed the dust revolver and joined Blake.

Yang was officially done with the White Fang. She didn't know if she had it in her to kill one of them. But, she'd be damned if she let them lay another finger on her partner.

* * *

 **AN: I've been writing like a man possessed lately. Once this chapter bypassed _Lifting the Veil_ , an info dump chapter mind you, as the longest chapter, I just knew I couldn't contain it to a single part. The chapter itself was still in a bit of a WIP state when I made the choice to split it (the action scene in the middle is undergoing editing/slight rewrites). Moving forward, if a chapter is leaning towards action heavy with zero major time jumps/scene changes, I'll most likely split it up. Action scenes for me can be a ton of fun to write. However, that can be quite a bit of work as well. The key to a good one is in the details. That in itself can take time. If part two is not up by the end of the day, I'll make it a point to try and have it up the next day.**

 **The bar: While there's been a funny line here or there, this story has been extremely serious so far. RWBY itself is known for a good mix of action, drama and humor. Therefore, I felt a few quick cutaway lines as Yang and Qrow took their descent into inebriation was needed. Qrow's joke was a punchline with the actual set-up removed, Yang had an obvious Barb pun, the men's room was my own twisted mind, the song was a Winter Wonderland parody I came across.**

 **White Fang Lieutenant: The chapter needed some cannon fodder. I figured it would be best to simply use him since he's pretty much an elite mook. Best part? The name does fit the Color Naming Rule. Keir is an Irish name meaning black.**

 **Blake: More will be revealed in the second part. I'll likely get her a flashback chapter or two at some point. Needless to say, the last six months weren't kind to her. If you remember my author's note from the first chapter, I mentioned that the original rough outline regarding backstory did call for some members of Team RWBY to be injured. Blake and Yang were those members. That's the main thing that hasn't changed and what made the canon events so interesting to work with. Yang loses her arm, Blake runs off. It's almost like they knew some guy was planning a fic and they decided to throw him a bone. Of course, in some ways RT are kinder than me. Keep in mind, I also said Ozpin and Qrow were dead in my original outline. More foreshadowing? Or is that just a red herring? YOU DECIDE!**

 **Look for the second part in the next 36 hours or so!**


	7. Reunion, Part 2

Chapter 6  
"Reunion (Part 2)"

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City of Vale, ten days ago

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All the training in the world couldn't prepare Yang for this situation. They were formerly students of Beacon Academy, arguably the best of the Huntsman Academies, due to attracting people from all four kingdoms. They were elite fighters trained in various aspects of combat. Instead, here they were scrambling up a fire escape. Yang was injured, drunk and had no real weapons to speak of aside from a simple revolver. Blake had a broken weapon and was playing a cat and mouse game with the White Fang. The two women were both handicapped and in a shootout with White Fang members. Neither woman expected to be in such a situation a year ago. However, by this point, it went with the territory. Even before the Vytal Festival, their first year had been anything but typical. This was just another thing to add to a long list of atypical situations that the members of Team RWBY often found themselves in. A list, that Yang could sense, would get much longer before they had any true answers regarding Cinder.

Blake had the remains of Gambol Shroud in pistol mode. She held her place on a lower part of the escape as she took shots at the White Fang. The two assassins were pinned down at the end of the alley and attempting to fire at them blindly. Not a single shot came anywhere near the girls. Meanwhile, Yang was using the chance to get up the fire escape. Just before reaching the top, Blake shouted at her. "Get ready to cover me, but make those shots count! I'm almost out of ammo!" Yang's mind turned to sarcastic thoughts as she used the rail to steady her aim.

 _Yeah, thanks for that Blake. No pressure at all._

She had very little experience with conventional firearms. Add to the fact that she had a concussion and was tipsy, and you had a recipe for irresponsible gun usage. Yang had serious doubts about her ability to hit something. With few options however, she had to at least try to keep them at bay long enough to get to the roof. The death of the other White Fang member was also still fresh in her mind. Yang didn't want to kill them if she didn't have to. She didn't want to kill anyone. Yet, knowing that these men had no such qualms made the decision to act much easier. As soon as one started to move out of cover, she acted.

Yang fired...and missed horribly.

The round landed at least a good seven or eight feet in front of the man. At this point, Blake was almost halfway up. If they decided to open fire now, she'd definitely take a hit. The last thing Yang wanted, was to let her partner test the limits of her aura. Yang fired again.

She missed wide and to the left.

By now, the two White Fang members had both poked their heads out of their hiding spots. After sharing a look of disbelief, the two began to advance. Getting frustrated, Yang fired two more shots to no effect. By now, even Blake was in shock. "You ok? You're firing that thing like you're drunk!" Yang was down to one round. As she tried to focus, she shouted back at Blake, "That's because I AM drunk, and I also have a concussion! Don't know if you caught the part where I made out with the wall!" Blake was at a loss for words as she reached Yang's level. She was about to say something, but then caught movement out of the corner of her good eye. Yang was so busy taking aim at one target, that she missed the fact that the second one had a clear shot at her. Without thinking twice, Blake grabbed Yang trying to shield her as he fired. Blake screamed out as she took the hit instead. Yang was expecting them to get knocked down from the force of the impact. Alternatively, she expected to see the hit drain her aura.

What she didn't expect, was getting splattered with Blake's blood.

Watching her friend go down was the breaking point for Yang. Within moments, her eyes flashed red as rage took over. Turning her attention to the one that fired the shot, Yang quickly took aim and fired. This time the round struck dead center, his aura flashing away. Just enough protection to avoid a fatal shot, not enough to keep him from getting knocked down. The other White Fang member looked at his friend, seemingly having a similar reaction to Yang. She was out of ammo, so thinking quickly, she let her Semblance and arm do the work and threw the gun like it was a rock. It hit him in the face with enough force to knock him down as well.

With the two assassins down, Yang turned her attention to Blake and feared the worst. Thankfully, she was using the railings of the fire escape to pull herself back to her feet. Helping her up, Yang saw the wound wasn't too serious. Her right arm had been grazed, nothing life threatening, but enough to scare the shit out of Yang. At that moment, something just suddenly occurred to Yang: Blake knowingly took that round without aura. Blake saw the questioning look on her friend's face as she picked her weapon up again. "I used what I had left to make the jump onto Keir. They've been hunting me constantly for six months. Vale, the Emerald Forest, Forever Fall. It didn't matter to them. No rest, no mercy. I've lost count of the number of times I tried to get sleep in a place I thought was safe, only to be woken up a couple of hours later. If it's not them, then it's the Grimm. It's endless!" Yang was horrified at the revelation. Even the strongest hunters wouldn't be able to properly recover their aura under such circumstances. Had this really been how Blake had lived for the last six months?

The history lesson would need to wait however. With their foes beginning to recover from their respective blows, the two members of Team RWBY needed to get moving again. "Get up the ladder Blake! I'll be right behind you." Before she could protest, Yang had already taken Gambol Shroud from Blake and was firing back at their assailants. Still partly enraged, her shots were far more accurate now. Yang hit the one she threw the gun at twice, draining his aura and knocking him back down. Not wanting to take a chance, his buddy scrambled behind the dumpster. Blake was slow to get up all the way, but she eventually made it. It wasn't a moment too soon, because at that instant Gambol Shroud was out of ammo. Yang instantly reverted it to its normal form and quickly followed Blake.

Once both were on the roof, they realized that their only escape option was just an extension of the dead end. The nearest building was too far away to jump to, and the only doors leading to an interior were emergency exits. For security, they were not designed to be opened from the roof. Rushing to the far side, Yang peered down. The building was about four stories tall and it was a straight drop. She didn't need to say a word to Blake, the look on her face said it all. With no aura, Blake couldn't take that jump, and Yang's minimal aura couldn't risk it either.

As unlikely as their odds were, they had to make a stand.

Yang could hear their attackers coming. She grabbed Blake by her good arm and pulled her behind the wall of one of the emergency exits. With her back to the wall, Yang held Gambol Shroud in her left hand, in a reverse grip. Her best option was to attempt to catch one of them off guard when they got close, try to steal their firearm and hope she had enough time to get the other. Their hiding spot didn't give them a view of the attackers, but they could hear the first one as he shouted to his partner. "Hurry your ass up! Unless they jumped, we've got them cornered!" Yang tensed up as she heard footsteps coming. She also heard the second thug making his way up the ladder. Just as she was about to jump out, she heard the second guy scream, the sound get faint, then a sickening thud. The White Fang member nearest to them sounded like he turned around. "Who the hell are you?!" he shouted. Whoever it was, they ignored the question, as a very familiar and slightly drunken voice said, "Don't worry about that. You might wanna check on your friend. I don't think his leg is supposed to bend that way." As soon as she heard the voice, Yang risked poking her head out.

Sure enough, there was Uncle Qrow.

Now that he was up close, Yang could see their attacker was a fox faunus with a tail. Suddenly, with no warning he took aim at Qrow and pulled the trigger.

The revolver gave the telltale click of an empty weapon.

"I counted the shots on the way here and saw the dropped revolver in the alley. Heard a completely different gun as well. There were three of you and I counted 18 revolver shots. You guys being out of ammo and apparently too stupid to notice seemed like a good bet." Yang hadn't fully made herself known yet, but she could clearly see that the fox faunus wasn't sure how to react to Qrow. His hand was slowly going towards his back and reaching for a dagger she hadn't noticed before. She was about to warn her uncle, when she realized she didn't have to do so. His hand had also gone behind his back for his own weapon. "Don't try it kid. I'll deflect it and cut you down before you can blink. Perhaps you can help me out instead. Got a bit carried away in a bar and I apparently missed the excitement." The faunus stopped his attempt to try to quickly throw the dagger, but he still made it a point to arm himself with the new weapon as he holstered the revolver.

Meanwhile, Qrow continued speaking. "The three of you are faunus, so I can only assume you're White Fang." The faunus merely chuckled as he adopted a fighting stance. "That's a pretty good observation for an old drunk. What's it matter to you?" Qrow narrowed his eyes at the aggressive move, and took his own ready stance as he spoke. "I want to know why you're after my niece." The faunus seemed confused for a moment, but then he eventually began to laugh. "The blonde? She just got in the way. All we really care about is Belladonna. Boss has a 300 lien bounty on her." Yang gave her partner a look of disbelief. Blake was sitting next to her and keeping pressure on her wound. "Well, that's just insulting" Yang said. Trying to lighten the mood, she added "I'd have at least offered them 301." Blake scoffed and told her, "You're all heart Yang." Despite the pain she was in, Blake did manage to smile slightly. The one thing she missed the most about her team was Yang's terrible, highly inappropriate sense of humor.

On the other side of the roof, Qrow was just laughing his ass off. "300 lien? Really? You have got to be the worst assassins ever if you think that's a good price!" By this point, the faunus was getting tired of Qrow. "Don't you mock me! That's more money than I've ever had!" Yang just shook her head in disbelief, while Qrow laughed even more. "Here's the way I see it kid" Qrow finally managed to say, while still chuckling a bit. "Your boss apparently wants to keep Blake on her toes. He doesn't expect you to kill her. He either wants that honor for himself, or wants to let one of his top guys look like a hero to the group. Why do you think he's trying to entice a few inept, low-level members of his group with such an insulting amount of money?" Now the assassin was losing his cool. "We're not inept! The one Blake killed was Adam's number two!" Qrow couldn't believe how dense this guy was. That bit of info told him that Adam expected these guys to mess up. He was starting to get tired of this game, so he decided to have one last bit of fun at this idiot's expense. "Adam's right hand man? I could make a crude joke about that, but it'd be beneath me."

Yang just groaned. How'd the saying go? Strange minds think alike?

"Here's how this plays out" Qrow told the guy. He completely dropped his stance and stood there, leaving himself open for attack. The White Fang member seemed confused by this action, but he at least seemed smart enough to not take the bait. "You have two choices. You can grow a brain, walk away and forget about Blake and my niece. You leave the White Fang and actually do something productive, because if you stay with them, it's going to get you killed." For a moment, he actually seemed to be considering the fact that he could walk away. However, a determined, angry look on his face suggested otherwise. Sighing, Qrow actually turned his back on his opponent, placed his hands behind his head and just looked down over the edge. "Option two it is. That's a long way down son." The fox faunus finally had it and rushed Qrow.

Before he could figure out what was going on, he found himself in incredible pain and sailing over the edge of the building. It had happened so fast, that his brain couldn't comprehend it. Across the roof, Yang saw everything. Before she could blink, her uncle ducked a swing with the dagger, turned around and grabbed the kid's weapon hand. With his free hand, Qrow punched upward and broke his arm at the elbow. Before the dagger could hit the ground, Qrow snatched it in midair, stabbed the faunus in one of his knees and then proceeded to throw him off the roof. Amazingly, by sheer luck the impact didn't kill him. It didn't even knock him out. He was however wishing Qrow had just killed him, as he kept screaming out in pain. The whole sequence took less than three seconds and would have proven an important lesson to any onlooker:

Drunk or sober, you do not mess with Qrow Branwen's family.

Finally stepping out, Yang shouted for her uncle. Qrow saw she was roughed up, but was mostly fine. "You could have helped at any time!" he shouted, as he walked towards her. Shaking her head, Yang said, "Couldn't risk it. We're both injured. Blake's been shot!" As soon as he heard that, Qrow quickened his pace. From far away, his niece didn't look that bad, but as soon as he saw the unfocused look in her eyes, he knew there was a mild concussion. Qrow obviously expected the gunshot wound to Blake as he turned the corner, but like Yang, he clearly was not ready to see what else had happened to her.

Quickly setting the sight aside, Qrow took out a pocket knife and cut away some fabric from the left sleeve of Blake's shirt. He intended to use it as a makeshift bandage, but as soon as her arm was exposed, Yang and Qrow were once again staring at Blake in shock. Her left shoulder and upper arm had burn scars. Qrow shook it off quickly since he had plenty of experience with injured huntsmen and huntresses. He began to focus on patching her wound and tore off the right sleeve. Yang on the other hand couldn't stop staring. She was trying to stay strong, but she couldn't stop the tears at this point. "What the hell did he do Blake? Torture you?" Blake winced a bit as Qrow tied the makeshift bandage tight. "In a manner of speaking? Yes, he did" she said in a quiet voice. "You saw him stab me at Beacon. I can't even remember the order I got the scars in. After awhile, everything just started to blend together. I've been slashed on the back by a sword, burned on the arm when they set fire to the building I was hiding in, slashed on the leg by a Beowolf when I tried to lose them in the forest. Ultimately, Adam eventually faced me one on one. Once I lost my eye, I thought he was finally done making me suffer. But, instead of killing me, he just kept on sending these guys after me. It was like I wasn't even worth his time anymore."

Yang was about to express her anger over Adam, but Qrow pulled her aside. "If their attacks are this constant and relentless, we can't put her in a hospital in Vale. She needs rest and time to recover. We've got to take her to Patch." Blake overheard that and panicked. "NO! If they follow us, he'll kill you both!" Yang was caught off guard by the outburst. Before she could ask, Blake explained it to her.

"The night of the Beacon attack, Adam told me 'I will make it my mission to destroy everything you lo...'" Blake stopped for a moment. The memories were clearly upsetting her. Eventually, she pulled herself together and continued. "'Everything you care about. Starting with her.'" Qrow raised an eyebrow at the last second word swap. Drunk as he was, he caught it. Yang however, was too caught up in her anger, since Beacon was drawing up bad memories. She didn't catch what Blake almost said. She was too focused on the words 'starting with her.' There really was no need to ask who Adam was referring to when he said that. Meanwhile, Blake continued with her story. "He wasn't lying. I didn't run from the hospital. I left because he was about to have you killed."

Yang felt like she got punched in the gut at the revelation. "What?"

Nodding, she explained it to her partner. "You were still in your coma. He was waiting outside the whole time. Adam waited until we were alone. The moment I saw him outside the window, I panicked. I was about to call for help, but before I could he pointed to you. Once I looked over, I saw a red light on your head. He actually had a sniper ready to shoot you if I refused to leave."

Yang was sickened by this news. She didn't want to even think about how easily Adam could have ended her life at that moment. Blake was crying again. "I didn't want to leave Yang! I never wanted to! He forced me to run and made it clear that if I attempted to go back to the hospital before you left, that you would die." Yang could feel her anger rising again, because deep down she now knew what Adam's thought process was. If he couldn't isolate and kill Blake, he'd simply drain all the hope she had. If that didn't work, then he'd use Blake's history of running in an attempt to make Yang hate her. Yang spent six months angry at the wrong person, and the revelation seriously pissed her off.

Qrow at this point was helping Blake to her feet. "I know you're apprehensive. But, you need to trust me. Patch is a pretty small island. All things considered, I don't think the White Fang are going to set foot on it too easily. Adam's a wanted criminal, therefore he's not coming on public transportation. Even if they try to slip in a faunus it won't be unnoticed. It's strictly a small island of humans. If he tries to get there on his own, we'll know about it. We're not asking you to stay longer than the time you need to recover. But, we are telling you that you've got to at least come for that. If you go into the hospital here, they'll find you. If you try to run again, I give you a week tops." The anger on Blake's face was clear. She knew Qrow was right. Blake had to rest and recover. She wasn't mad at him directly, but she was mad about something he said. "You're wrong about one thing. I have no intention to run." Qrow seemed confused as Blake reached her left hand up to her bow. Yang on the other hand, gasped. She knew exactly what Blake was about to do, and she knew that Blake wanted her intentions clear. With one motion, Blake pulled a piece of the ribbon and exposed her cat ears.

"I'm done running."

* * *

 **AN: Forgive the lateness of the chapter. I originally had every intent to get this out sooner. However, in my infinite wisdom, I worked on it and decided to take a break. Forgot to save that work and had to begin the fight scene again.**

 **Well, it WAS a fight scene. It eventually evolved into a standoff when I started to think about things. These guys had been chasing Blake for months. The only reason she was hurt so many times, was due to having her aura constantly depleted and giving no real chance to recover. After thinking about it, I came to the conclusion that these guys were rather inept. If they were having so much trouble with Blake, then they didn't even stand a chance with Qrow. One of them actually giving him a halfway decent fight made zero sense.**

 **Yang: Well we already know how powerful she gets when she gets really mad. I figured that could be expanded into her senses kicking into overdrive as well. That's why Yang suddenly goes from being unable to hit the side of a barn, to suddenly being able to land shots without issue.**

 **Qrow: The bar wasn't too far away from where this was all going down. The moment he heard the first shot, he likely would have noticed Yang was gone.**

 **Blake: Still thinking about how to do a flashback for her. Might do quick tidbits. Might do one long chapter. I'm undecided on that. What I do know is that it won't be anywhere close to being as long as Yang's flashback (five chapters, one being double length). Also because I've been asked: yes I opted to have Blake in her "Intruder" outfit from _Painting the Town._ I honestly prefer the look of that outfit over what she normally wears.**

 **This time around I'm not going to make the mistake of giving a timeframe on the next chapter. While this was technically midweek like I originally said, it didn't happen without issues. At the very least, I will make it a point to try to stick to my original promise of one chapter a week.**

 **Hope you guys are enjoying the story. As always, feel free to drop me a line. Be sure to follow it if you're enjoying it!**


	8. Preparations, Part 1

Chapter 7  
"Preparations (Part 1)"

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City of Vale: The Kuro Kuma Club, Present Day

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"That's where everything stands" Yang said, as she placed her glass back down on the bar. How many shots did that make? Three? Four? She couldn't remember, but she had enough foresight to pace herself. She had spent the last couple of hours speaking with Junior. There was a ton of info she needed to go over with him. Being drunk and on her ass wouldn't help Yang make her case. Feeling a need for a quick recap, she said, "The White Fang made themselves known at Beacon. I did what I could to slow them down, but ultimately I was crippled by Adam. Meanwhile, unknown to me at the time, Cinder moved forward with her own plan. To this day, I still don't know what was hidden under Beacon. All I know is that whatever it was, it led to her gaining unimaginable power." Junior had told Yang to tell him everything, but she felt that information on the Maidens was extremely far off in 'need to know' territory. Deep down, she knew he'd eventually uncover that info for himself. For now however, Yang decided it was better to take her chances and leave that out. She still wasn't sure if she could trust Junior fully. In truth, Junior was actually the LAST person Yang wanted to give any of this info to. Yet, due to the events of the last several months, he was pretty much the only person who would be able to secure the things they needed.

Seeing no signs that he had caught on to the missing pieces of info, Yang continued. "Eventually, I woke up in Vale and freaked out over my arm. Blake was missing, Weiss was forced to leave, months passed. Then, my sister decided the perfect time to leave was quite literally the day after I started to come out of my depressed funk. I found Blake a little over a week ago, we got our asses kicked and my uncle saved us both. Worst of all I had to get rid of my favorite jacket and cut my hair."

Junior scoffed at the last remark as he poured himself another shot. "Yeah. I'm sure between all the people who have died, you losing an arm and your partner losing an eye, your hair getting ripped out and your jacket being too bloodstained to salvage were the worst things to happen." Yang looked a bit guilty once Junior made that remark. "It's not like that at all" she said. Joking about things was normally her first reaction. Yang was trying to make light of two of the things that ultimately didn't matter, but in doing so, she inadvertently made it seem like she didn't care about everything else. Seeing the stressed look on her face, Junior was quick to try to reassure her. "Relax, Blondie. I know what you were going for. The last six months haven't exactly been easy for anyone."

Yang was surprised that Junior of all people was trying to comfort her. Placing her head in her hands, she leaned on the bar and let out a tired sigh. "Everything is just so messed up now" she told Junior. "Winter's ending. We should be back at Beacon. If anything, we should be getting ready to end our first year there and looking forward to a break. Hell, maybe even doing some small contracts from the mission board. Instead, we're scattered and mourning fallen friends. Me and Blake are picking up the pieces. We're trying to figure out just what the hell went wrong. The world has changed." Looking to her arm, Yang added, "Some of us have also changed. Physically in some cases, mentally in others."

For his part, Junior showed he was still full of surprises. As he finished the last of the rum, he told Yang, "You'd be far from the first huntress or solider to make that observation. When you run a business such as this, you tend to see many folks who think they are completely invincible. Granted, the circumstances are a bit more dire, but the rules stay the same. No one in your line of work makes it past the first year without a major wake up call. Here's the question. Are you going to overcome those setbacks and adapt, or are you going to let your hardships rule your future?" He studied her for a moment before simply saying, "I can see it in your eyes. In that case, let's discuss some actual business."

Yang realized she had to give Junior some credit. When she originally met him nearly a year ago, she just dismissed him as some dumb brute. A person that wasn't worth her time once she found out he couldn't help her. She now actually felt bad about wrecking the club the first time. Yang couldn't figure out if the lack of intelligence was an act, or if it was merely street smarts and experience with huntsmen making up the difference. Her better judgement was still telling her she should be careful, but another part of her was telling her that Junior would have their backs, provided they didn't cross whatever strange code of honor these underworld types stuck to.

Meanwhile, Junior had tossed the empty bottle into a trash can behind the bar. Yang could see he was completely serious as he turned his attention to her. "Ok then. First off, supplies. I'll do what I can to get them in short order. Basic supplies? Simple enough, in fact it's on me." Yang couldn't take it anymore. "Why are you being so helpful?" she asked. Junior was now behind the bar. Pulling out a notebook and a pen, he told her, "It's simple. I figured Roman was just looking to make some quick scores. How do you think I feel knowing he looked to cripple the kingdom, just so his crazy boss could nearly destroy it?" She realized he made a good point. While no one could deny the things Junior was tied up in, Yang could see he wasn't a man who actively seeked to do physical harm to people or the kingdom. Granted, most wouldn't agree with the shady aspects of his business, but at least Junior didn't have aspirations to take over Vale, or aspirations to watch the world burn.

Junior tapping on the notebook brought Yang's attention back to their business. "Right" she said. "First off, I need a weapon repaired. I'm going to need a replacement blade and sheath for a Variant Ballistic Chain Scythe. The sheath itself doubles as a cleaver. The actual weapon itself is a double-edged katana." Junior was writing all this down in his notebook as he spoke. "VBCS, sheath and blade. I assume Gambol Shroud is the weapon then?" Yang just sat there dumbfounded at the fact that Junior actually named Blake's weapon. Without looking up as he wrote notes, he said, "Do you honestly think people in this bar weren't betting on the Vytal Festival? The weapons themselves were public knowledge. In fact, aside from any unknown modifications you guys may have made, I could tell you all about Crescent Rose, Ember Celica or Myrtenaster." Yang wasn't sure if she should be impressed or worried. While the teams competing knew what weapons were being used, she hadn't known it was public knowledge to the folks watching at home. Then again, it was likely a moot point. It wasn't like Cinder didn't already know what weapons they used. Junior looking up at her snapped her attention back once more. "Anyway, I should still have some footage of the Vytal Festival saved somewhere. That should get me enough information on the weapon. I'm going to assume..."

Yang put her hand up to stop Junior for a moment. She wanted to make sure she heard him right. "You have all the footage of the tournament?" she asked, completely shocked. As soon as Junior nodded, Yang pulled out her scroll. While they were useless for communications, they were still capable of holding plenty of data. "I need that footage. Don't know if it'll actually help, but I still want to look over it." Nodding once again, Junior took the scroll and shouted over his shoulder towards an office door. "VERDI!" A few moments later, a woman in a black and red dress came out. "Yeah? What do you need boss?" she asked Junior as she cautiously eyed Yang. Yang herself couldn't remember if this woman was in the club the night she wrecked it, but she could tell looking into her eyes that she must have been. Handing the scroll to Verdi, Junior said, "Our friend here needs the video from the Vytal Festival. All of it. Even the illegal feeds we tapped into." The woman was ready to protest, but one look from Junior quickly made her think twice.

As she went back towards the office, Yang chuckled. "Illegal video feeds Junior? Shameful! What will the cable company say?" Turning his attention back to the notebook, Junior replied, "Considering I paid them under the table? Not much. I had the only bar in town that had access to every camera. Anyway, VBCS. Before you interrupted me, I was going to ask about ammo as well." Yang simply nodded and watched Junior write that down. "What about you?" he asked next. "I see you're not carrying Ember Celica these days." Sighing, Yang looked at her hands as she spoke. "Well, as you've no doubt noticed, I'm not exactly ready for that again. Even if I was, Adam's attack completely burned my arm to ashes along with the right bracer."

Junior gestured towards Yang's gloved hand. "Well, you've got to have a plan. That thing isn't built for combat." As soon as he said that, the frustration on her face was apparent. Yang got extremely lucky when she punched the dumpster and Keir. It wasn't until the day after her fight that she noticed the calibration was off. Yang had slowly gotten used to simple tasks again, but when her hand kept moving at unnatural angles, she knew she'd have to make adjustments. It was just like Qrow said. She could get out of a bind and land one hell of a hit if needed, but it would come at the cost of eventually causing permanent damage to the limb.

"So, how are you with melee weapons anyway?"

Junior's question snapped Yang back to the discussion about supplies and weapons. She thought back to her time at Signal. One of the key requirements to pass was eventually making your own weapon. Yang had learned everything she knew from her father, so it didn't take long for her to settle on Shot Gauntlets. Even so, the early training at Signal did have students train with several basic weapons. It was something her uncle pushed to have added in as a requirement. His belief was that if a hunter or huntress couldn't adapt, then they were as good as dead. At the time, Yang felt it was silly considering she planned on just using her fists. In light of what had happened at Beacon however, she now realized the importance of such training.

Yang thought long and hard. The idea of changing her fighting style, even if it was only temporary, wasn't something she wanted to do. All things considered however, until she got a permanent hand, it was either that or risk being one-armed again. Yang thought about her options. She prefered to stay mobile, so heavy weapons were out of the question. If she had to change her fighting style, then she at least wanted something light. Bladed weapons? Yang remembered that she wasn't great with them, but she did remember that she did decently with small, blunt weapons. and she didn't want something too heavy.

So far she had settled on several key things. First, it had to be blunt and it couldn't impede her movement. Yang was also certain that whatever it was, it had to be capable of quick strikes, yet also be used for defense. _Well, if I'm thinking defense and attack, then I'm thinking of dual wielding._ That's when it hit her.

"Junior, would you be able to get a pair of Dust Powered Eskrima Sticks? I'll also need a few different types of Dust to go with them."

Writing in the notebook, Junior said, "Simple enough." Yang was glad to hear that, but in truth was concerned about how effective she'd be. It'd been a number of years since she last trained with such weapons. Yang would have to jump on training and practice as soon as she was back home. Right now, the plan was to give Blake another two weeks to rest and recover. At that point, regardless of how ready either of them truly felt, they agreed that they needed to meet up with Ruby. Yang felt guilty over that part. Blake was willing to dive right in, yet knew nothing about the Maidens. Qrow felt it was best to let her have a few days to recover and get her mind off the White Fang first. However, when Yang was ready to talk, Blake just said that it was more important to focus on getting ready. Despite everything, Yang couldn't shake the feeling that if Blake learned the truth, she would bolt away again. However, Yang couldn't think about that now. She needed to conclude her business with Junior. Weapons and supplies were pretty much covered. There was one other matter to attend to. Pulling out a piece of paper, she handed it to Junior. "This is the last thing" she said. "I need you to cross reference these names. Go back about two or three years if you have to. Even if it seems minor, we need to know about any connections that you find." Junior raised an eyebrow as he read the list and the notes on it.

 _Cinder Fall: Mastermind_  
 _Emerald Sustrai/Mercury Black: Lieutenants?_  
 _Adam Taurus: WF Leader (what's the connection?)_  
 _Roman Torchwick: Stole Dust, supplied weapons, crippled Vale (dead, but told Ruby he "couldn't afford to lose." What did he mean?)_  
 _Neo: Connected to Roman somehow. Still at large. Potential threat!_

As soon as he was done reading it, Junior looked at Yang. "This is going to take time. Aside from Adam and Roman, most of those names I only know from the tournament. One of them however..." Junior trailed off like he was deep in thought. Yang didn't get the chance to ask. He looked at the paper, then back to her once more. "I've heard the name Black before. Can't remember when or where. What I do remember is this: whatever it was in context to wasn't good. Best I can offer right now is a warning. Adam's dangerous, but that mainly comes from being unstable. Black? If it's the person I'm thinking of, he's quite possibly your biggest threat outside of Cinder." Over the last several months, Yang had plenty of time to think about how things went down at the tournament. Seeing how Junior was reacting actually confirmed a fear of hers.

 _Mercury let me win._

If that was the case, she had major concerns about running into him once again. On the surface, the fight at Vytal appeared to be a hard-fought battle. For the first weeks after the tournament, Yang didn't doubt her victory. She figured whatever plan they had was ruined by her win. However, as time went on and she thought about it more, she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right about that battle. Yes, there was the fact that Mercury attacked her. She attacked in self-defense and broke his leg, yet somehow the events unfolded differently for the public. A couple of days later he was walking around and fine. Looking back, she felt that he might not have taken the fight seriously. Yet, Yang couldn't worry about that now. Those were questions for another day. Her first major goal was getting whatever info she could to her sister. "How long do you figure it'll take you to get everything together?" she asked Junior. Putting away his book, he said, "Not too long. Give me until the grand opening. Granted, I can't promise I'll have much about your friends. Whatever their plans are, they've been plotting this for a long time. That much is obvious. Best I might be able to do is public knowledge. Or, I could get lucky, find something unexpected and unravel everything. As for the weapons, those will definitely be ready."

Almost on cue, Verdi suddenly came back to the bar with Yang's scroll. "There's all the Vtyal Festival video" she said. "Don't really know why the boss wants you to have it, but I know better than to argue with him." As soon as she said that, she just as quickly left. Yang was thinking of making a comment about the woman not being much of a talker, but felt like Junior had heard it before. Instead, she thanked him for his assistance and left.

As for Junior, he waited until Yang had left. Once she had, he turned his attention to the piece of paper she left him. Years of working with clients told him she was hiding something. Truthfully, he expected it. In fact, Junior would have been more worried if she spilled all the beans up front. That was typically a sign of complete desperation. Junior knew that a desperate client was usually a bad sign. Granted, everything about this whole thing was a bad sign. Yet, he still needed to do his part. The lack of that info might hinder him, but for now he'd deal with it. Even so, he did need a bit more to go on, so he made his own additions:

 _Ozpin: Clearly hiding something (What's his secret?)_  
 _Pyrrha Nikos: Killed by Cinder (Why?)_  
 _Ruby Rose: Why is she so damn important?_

There were several more questions, but those were the three biggest ones. Setting his pen down, Junior just shook his head as he thought back to everything he had discussed with Yang.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into?"

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 **AN: Now that we're back in the present, it's time to move things along a bit. Expect the next few chapters to dump some info and see Yang and Blake get back into fighting shape a bit (not to mention repair their relationship).**

 **Kuro Kuma Club: Junior's club has never received a proper name in canon. Therefore, I simply adapted the naming rule to come up with something fitting. The name is Japanese for Black Bear.**

 **Junior: Let's face it, he's pretty stupid in the Yellow Trailer. His appearance in Volume 2 doesn't exactly make him appear smarter, but at the same time he's not nearly as bad as he was in the trailer. I figured it would be best to make it a combination of actual street smarts, and partly an act to catch people off guard. Don't worry. He's not suddenly going to be the smartest guy in the story. In regards to his business however, he's going to know his stuff. It would at least explain why Yang keeps going to him.**

 **Yang's new weapons: Considering the limitations I put on her arm, I tried to come up with something that could potentially work for her fighting style. I felt it had to be something related to martial arts and eventually settled for Arnis/Eskrima. At this point, I don't know if I'm going to make that a long term addition, but I do think it's a weapon that could fit into RWBY's world very well, provided it's done right.**


	9. Preparations, Part 2

Chapter 7  
"Preparations (Part 2)"

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Village of Patch, 12 days until Yang and Blake's departure

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"DAMMIT!"

Yang did her best to try to ignore the odd sensation, as she rubbed the bruised knuckles of her flesh and blood hand, with the cold metal of her artificial one. It hadn't even been ten minutes since the warmup had ended, yet she had already been disarmed three times. Meanwhile, Taiyang was absent-mindedly twirling an eskrima stick in his right hand, while tapping the other against his leg. Seeing this, Yang frowned as she picked up her dropped weapons. "Somehow, I get the feeling you aren't taking me seriously" she said to her father. Suppressing a chuckle, Taiyang replied, "Well, you haven't touched these things in about three or four years. If our roles were reversed, would you?"

As much as she didn't like to admit it, Yang knew her father had a point. Tai was a master of various martial arts. He had attempted to convince Yang at a young age to not settle on a single fighting style. Tai wanted to teach her everything he knew, and their original training reflected that. However, as soon as Yang had seen Shot Gauntlets for the first time, Tai knew it was a battle he wouldn't win. Yang wanted to stick with just hand to hand techniques. She had the mindset and drive to progress at unheard of rates, but her stubbornness in regards to training with actual weapons led to her skill with them deteriorating. She did retain the basic knowledge, but plenty of work would be required to get her proficient once more. Despite her attempts to not give in to rage, Yang was upset and angry at herself. Blind rage was what cost her most in her very brief encounter with Adam. In the back of her mind, she wondered if the outcome could have been different somehow if she had managed to keep a clear head.

 _No. Don't think like that Yang. Don't dwell on the past._

That seemed to be the recurring theme as of late. Even when she was young, her uncle impressed upon her to not let the past control the future in a way that would harm her. Her father had a similar conversation during their first post recovery sparring session. Hell, even Junior of all people had said something along those lines. Dwelling on the past was something she had done too much of recently, and it was something she couldn't do anymore. The past was static, something that couldn't be changed. For every small change and what-if, there were countless variables that could not be accounted for. If events had been different enough, then Adam could have simply killed her and Blake on the spot. Right now, the best thing she could do was learn from her mistakes and attempt to not make the same ones again later.

Taking up a fighting stance once more, Yang made the first move. However, even to a casual observer, it was clear that anger guided her strikes. She came in with a high, overhead strike with her right hand. With almost no effort on his part, Tai brought his left hand and stick in front of his face to block the blow. Yang wasn't going to give her father a chance to follow up. She put her weight into her first strike to force Tai to hold his block, then she swung her other weapon around up high. Tai frowned at the movement, noting how sloppy it was. He had more than enough room to duck under the blow. As he did so, he dropped his guard as he pivoted on his right foot and spun around. Yang was still putting most of her own weight on her right side. Her father's movement forced her off balance and caused her to stumble forward. Meanwhile, as Tai finished spinning around he aimed a strike at the back of one of Yang's knees. Since this was just training, the blow was far from hard or damaging, but it was enough to make the young woman's left leg buckle. Before she could attempt to get back to her feet, Tai lightly tapped both sides of her head with his eskrima sticks.

"And with that, your leg is broken and your skull has been fractured in two places. If you somehow managed to live, you'll be walking with a limp and having a liquid diet. Oh, and there's the possibility of drooling while attempting to remember your name."

Yang sighed as she got to her feet and looked at Tai. It was clear at this point that a ton of work would be needed. Plus, there was the fact that when it came to fighting at least, she was still letting anger control her actions in battle. It was hard for Yang to not give in since her Semblance was partly powered by that emotion. However, she was going to need to learn control, otherwise she'd be prone to repeating her mistakes.

Meanwhile, Tai had set his weapons down near a cooler. Pulling out a couple of bottles of water, he tossed one to his daughter. "Take five minutes. When we get started again, we're back to basics. Despite your insistence, you're not quite ready for disarming drills yet." Yang wanted to protest, but she knew he was right. She was the type of person who wanted to jump right into things. It was quickly becoming clear that she'd need to take it a bit slower. Holding her bottle in her left hand, she attempted to open it, but instead of twisting the cap off she ripped it off instead. Groaning, she let out another sigh as she drank from the extra-large opening she created.

This was going to be a long week.

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 **AN: Yeah, I know. Part 2 of the chapter is on the short side. Originally, it was going to be much longer. However, this portion of Chapter 7 includes the focus shifting from Yang to Blake a few times. Blake's portion is going to involve diving into a backstory I had created for her. Out of all four members of Team RWBY, to this day she's still the one that has had the least info about her past revealed. Therefore, it tends to fall to us fanfiction writers to come up with something that will inevitably be a non-canon, AU experience. I at least hope that we get some new info regarding her in Volume 4.**

 **Anyway, I felt with another info dump incoming, a shorter chapter portion would work best. Next part is actually mostly written. Wait shouldn't be too long ^_~**

 **Also, for the record, Rooster Teeth is right. Blake IS one of the harder characters to write for, especially when you've got to come up with backstory :P**


	10. Preparations, Part 3

Chapter 7  
"Preparations (Part 3)"

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Village of Patch, the Xiao Long home

* * *

While her partner trained outside, Blake was in the guest room of the Xiao Long home. Since returning to Patch with Yang, she had taken the guest room while Yang finally moved back into the room she shared with Ruby. Recovery from her wounds hadn't been too bad. In fact, the scar left behind from being shot wasn't nearly as bad as the others since it got actual treatment. Rest in a real bed had also done plenty of good for her body. Even so, Signal's doctors suggested she wait a couple more days before attempting to do any physical training. Unlike her partner however, Blake wouldn't need time to practice swinging a weapon again. Instead, she had volunteered to look over the Vytal Festival footage. She hadn't gotten very far however. Her main job was to look for anything odd in the matches that Cinder's team had taken part in. She was also making it a point to look for anything strange or out-of-place in other matches. At the time, Blake thought something snapped in Yang's mind when she apparently attacked Mercury. In the days since being reunited with her partner, she had learned that Coco Adel had also experienced a similar issue. Pyrrha was also overheard saying such things prior to her death. Ultimately, Blake wasn't sure what she'd be looking for, but she had a feeling with enough time to look over everything, she'd find it. However, the search for answers hit a snag.

As soon as Blake got to video of Team RWBY versus Team ABRN, she was stopped in her tracks.

The early matches were easy enough for her to watch. To begin with, she wanted to become familiar with each fight before looking for anything that might suggest interference. Once she got to one of her own fights however, she couldn't help but stare at herself and Yang. There they were, intact and without serious injuries. Yang still had her arm. Blake still had both eyes and lacked the collection of scars that now crisscrossed her body. Eventually, she paused the video once there was a shot of the two of them standing side by side. She wasn't sure how long she had stared at the still image, but she knew it had to at least be several minutes. It took a sudden voice coming from the bedroom doorway to snap her back to reality.

"Over a hundred channels and nothing good on, right?"

Blake nearly fell out of bed and dropped the scroll in surprise as Qrow walked into the room. "Mr. Branwen!" she said, attempting to pull herself together. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you walk in." Qrow chuckled at that and said, "With those ears? Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if you've heard everything we've talked about in this house." Qrow was about to say something else, but stopped when he saw the guarded look on Blake's face. It was a look he had seen before on the faces of other faunus.

It was the look of a person that was unsure if they had heard a good-natured joke, or were being insulted.

As soon as he saw that look, Qrow apologized. "Sorry about that kid. I didn't mean anything bad" he said to her. "Still not used to the fact that you're actually a faunus. Up until the reveal, I figured you were just someone who really pissed off Adam Taurus for some reason." The look on Blake's face softened, even turned to one of confusion once he said that. "You mean Ruby and Yang never mentioned it?" she asked. Raising an eyebrow, Qrow said, "You really do have a tough time trusting people, don't you?" Blake looked a bit ashamed over that fact as Qrow continued. "That was your secret. A secret you trusted them with. It would have taken a life of death situation for them to just tell someone." Curiosity getting the better of him, Qrow decided to just ask what he was thinking, point-blank. "Why the sudden change of heart anyway? In hindsight, I'm actually surprised at the fact that you decided to stop."

Blake had started to stare at her scroll again, but her face became completely serious as she looked to Qrow. "I didn't have the best childhood. Like many faunus, I had to deal with tons of insensitive remarks. One day, I had just grown tired of all the insults from people who only saw a lesser being, rather than another person. Eventually, I learned I could hide in plain sight by simply using this." Reaching over to the end table, Blake picked up her ribbon. Despite making a promise to stop hiding, it was still a keepsake she wouldn't get rid of. "Adam and his men did enough to make me realize I shouldn't have to hide. I've already gotten my fair share of odd looks ever since I lost my left eye. Honestly, I think I get more strange looks now, than I did without my bow. The few times I've been asked, I didn't go into detail. All I did was mention that I was attacked by the White Fang. It took me saying it a few times to realize the impression people were getting." Blake didn't have to explain it. Qrow understood immediately and said, "All they saw was a poor human girl who had been brutally attacked by a fanatical faunus rights group." Nodding, Blake told him, "At this point, names and sour looks from a few bigots will never compare to the pain and suffering they've inflicted on me. If people want to assume the worst just because I'm a faunus, then that's fine. I'll just be sure to tell them the truth: the White Fang no longer care about equality. They'll hurt human and faunus alike if it brings them closer to their goals."

Letting out a sigh, Blake had moved to place the ribbon back on the end table. At the last-minute however, she stopped. Rather than put it away, she put it back on. However, instead of concealing her ears, Blake had used it to tie her hair back. Qrow watched her do this and could clearly see that this wasn't just a simple ribbon for the woman. "That's very important to you, isn't it?" he asked. Blake nodded as she set her scroll on the table and sat up in the bed. "This ribbon once belonged to my mother. It was a present she gave me as a child. Originally, my father had given it to her when she still lived in Menagerie." Blake stopped talking for a moment one she mentioned her father. The look on her face was another look Qrow knew all too well. He already had a pretty good idea where this was going before she even said it. "I never knew him. He died before I was born. All I've ever really known about him were stories. He was a Dust miner. Nowhere near being a trained solider or hunter. The night he died, our village was attacked by Grimm. Most of the defenders had already been killed. At that point, everyone was apparently waiting for the inevitable. He knew the odds were terrible, yet he refused to die hiding in a house. He knew he likely wouldn't survive, but despite that, he fought so my mother and the others could live. He stepped outside and used whatever he could find. Mining picks, rocks, swords. It didn't matter to him. Apparently, he even used a long shard of glass as a makeshift dagger. Eventually, the sounds of battle stopped. In the morning, they found him about ten feet away from our home." The look on Blake's face, as a single tear fell, was a mix of pride and sadness. "He had actually tried to crawl back, likely to say goodbye to my mother, but his wounds were too terrible. He never made it back. If it wasn't for him however, everyone would have died."

"Darrah Belladonna, the Black Oak. The Hero of Jade Village."

Blake went wide-eyed once Qrow mentioned her father's name. However, the two nicknames left her confused as well. Seeing the look on her face, Qrow explained. "I'm guessing you were either very young when you left Menagerie, or that you were born outside there. Otherwise, you'd have known about the big statue of him they put up a few years ago. Don't know how true to life it is, but it depicts a very large cat faunus with a mining pick and a sword. He essentially became the symbol of not just the village, but the whole island. Much like how Adam became the White Fang's symbol." As Qrow said that, he appeared deep in thought for a moment. "I suppose in hindsight, I should have figured out you were a faunus much sooner. Belladonna isn't exactly a common name."

Blake was ignoring Qrow's reflection on things. She was born in a village just outside of Vale. While she knew her mother was from Menagerie, she didn't talk about it much. Blake could only assume this was due to the bad memories of that night. Other faunus she had run into either weren't from there, or they spoke poorly of its people. "You said my father is a symbol to them. What exactly is it like there?" she asked Qrow. By now, Qrow was standing at the window and watching Yang and Tai practice in the woods. "Well, they're the opposite of the Fang in every way" he told her. "Granted, they aren't exactly completely trustful of humans. Many of the older faunus still hold memories of the Faunus Rights Revolution. However, unlike the White Fang, most are at least are willing to work towards a peaceful future without resorting to violence. Those that live there don't generally agree with the methods the Fang use. Adam Taurus became the Fang's poster boy as their methods became more extreme. Your father? He became a symbol of hope for the island, one that represents determination against terrible odds. I think that's a big part of the reason why so many on Menagerie don't support the Fang. They know things aren't perfect, but deep down they believe in a better future." Qrow stopped for a moment and winced as he watched Tai plant a blow on the back of Yang's leg. He could tell it was far from a full contact sparring session, but he knew that the hit likely still stung. Continuing to watch his brother-in-law and his niece, he said, "If anything, I'd say that despite not knowing him, your father's determination rubbed off on you. I read your medical report after Signal's doctors treated you. I've known hunters that would have caved in under the pressure had they experienced half your injuries."

Turning back to Blake, Qrow asked her, "What about your mother? What exactly happened to get you involved with the White Fang?" Qrow could see it was a touchy subject for the young woman. For a moment, he thought she wasn't going to say anything. Eventually, she said, "She came to Vale after my father died. The village was rebuilding, and she wasn't in any condition to work the mines. She settled in one of the villages outside the main city. A couple of months after arriving, I was born. My mother mainly did small, odd jobs to provide for us. She couldn't keep doing small jobs however. The problem was, people in Vale didn't want to hire a faunus." Qrow closed his eyes and shook his head as he let out a sigh. Things like that were a key problem in the relationship between humans and faunus. All it ever did was keep the cycle of hate and mistrust moving.

Meanwhile, Blake continued. "When I was about six, she answered a job placement ad for a mine surveyor. Jade Village was a village of miners and their families. Even the women would have a hand in working the mines. She felt she was qualified, so she applied for the job. My mother was hired and went on a surveying job in Forever Fall." Blake paused, seemingly unwilling to continue. Qrow however, knew how that story ended. "That was the Schnee Mining disaster, wasn't it?" The girl didn't need to answer to confirm it. Qrow himself was familiar with the events.

A little over ten years ago, the Schnee Dust Company expanded operations to Forever Fall. In a first for the company, they had actually hired faunus for the job, despite Mr. Schnee's very public stance as a person that didn't support equal rights. For the first few months, things went well. However, one day a team dug a bit too deep and caused a partial mine collapse. The collapse had opened a previously undiscovered section of the cave network, a section that turned out to be infested with Grimm. Qrow and Oobleck were the ones sent out to eliminate the Grimm and find survivors. The elimination portion of the mission went off without a hitch. The two huntsmen made extremely quick work of the Grimm and proceeded to seal off the tunnel. However, what always struck Qrow as odd, was that they didn't find survivors. It wasn't even a matter of finding bodies. There was literally no trace of anyone that had been trapped. No blood, no signs of struggle, simply nothing. Qrow wanted to investigate, but the Schnee Dust Company insisted that nothing more could be done and had rushed the two huntsmen out once the job was finished. Was it unsafe practices? Did they do something to the miners? Qrow couldn't say for sure, but deep down he knew that foul play was involved. The look on Blake's face told him that she believed that as well.

For his part, Qrow didn't bring up the specifics of the mission. After everything Blake had experienced in recent months, as well as the experiences that were coming if she decided to stay, he didn't need to add more worries by reopening old wounds. However, he knew he'd have to eventually speak to her about it. Meanwhile, Blake managed to show just how perceptive she could be. After studying him for a few seconds, she simply said, "It's all over your face. You were the huntsman involved with the clean up, weren't you?" Qrow didn't say a word. Instead, he merely made a grim mental note to never play poker with this woman.

Blake seemed to interpret Qrow's silence on the matter as some sort of admission of guilt. "Don't blame yourself. I know if my mother was alive, or if there was even a trace of an answer, you would have done all that you could. In any case, after that it didn't take much to get me into the White Fang. One of my mother's friends took me in to keep me out of an orphanage. Their family was already involved with the White Fang. For them, the Schnee incident was just another thing they could use to stir up the faunus. At that point, they were still mainly peaceful. Yet, as the years went by, they attrached more people like Adam. Eventually, those who simply wanted peace and equal rights had their voices reduced to a whisper, while Adam and his people gained power and stirred up hatred." Blake closed her eye and looked away from Qrow, as she thought about those memories. "At first, it was easy to go along with them. I hated the Schnee family. It was their fault that my mother had died. In the early days it was simple. Destroy some property, divert a shipment, steal some prototype they had made. Each time we went out on a job, we made it a point to not get anyone hurt. I eventually heard about the murders and the kidnappings of Schnee employees." Blake paused for a moment. Just remembering her inaction and unwillingness to get out at that point made her sick. "I honestly don't know what I was thinking. I can't remember if I was just making excuses or simply chose to ignore what was going on. It wasn't until I personally witnessed Adam doing those very things, that I started to seriously question it. As time went on, I could see the changes in Adam more and more. I don't know if despair and desperation tainted him, or if he was always that evil deep down, but once he moved on to blatantly killing innocent people, I refused to have a hand in it anymore. I couldn't live with knowing that I could possibly put some young child into the very situation I found myself in." The stress and regret was clear on Blake's face, as she looked back to Qrow. "The last job I did with the White Fang made it clear to me. I didn't want to keep this cycle going. I've lost my family. I don't want to be the reason someone else lost theirs."

Blake's expression now turned dark. "That's why I absolutely hate Adam for forcing me into his sick game." The anger in Blake's voice was clear as she spoke. "In the last six months, I've injured countless members of the White Fang. Even so, I made sure they didn't die. Each time I've acted, it's been in self-defense. But, that night in Vale?" She couldn't stop herself from crying anymore. "Keir forced me to cross the line! He was scum, but I would have spared even him if Yang hadn't been in danger! I..."

Blake couldn't talk anymore. Qrow could clearly see that this was a breakdown that was building up for a long time. As the young woman buried her face into her hands, Qrow rushed over, sat next to Blake and just hugged her close to him. At first, Blake tensed up. She clearly wasn't used to anyone doing such a thing, but eventually, she just let the man draw her in while she let everything out.

Several minutes had passed. Once she had calmed down a bit, Qrow broke the silence. "For what it's worth, I'd have done the same thing. Ultimately, as hunters, we try not to kill anyone. There are occasions where it's unavoidable, yet we still try. However, these people are not playing by any sort of rules. The White Fang? Cinder? They don't care who dies. If it serves their goals, it's an acceptable loss. Considering the circumstances, there isn't a single huntsman or huntress that would fault you for what you did. You were protecting your family."

Blake pulled away from Qrow at the mention of that word. "My...family?" she asked, sounding unsure if she heard the older man correctly. Nodding, Qrow told her, "Family is more than just blood. Yes, you've lost your parents. It's a terrible thing that can't be changed. Yet, in becoming a huntress, you've gained three sisters." Qrow did his best to suppress a chuckle as he said the next part. "Unfortunately, that also comes with their extended family as well. You've picked up a drunk uncle. Not really sure what you're going to do about the racist in-law however." Blake gave Qrow an odd look at that last part. "Yang's father isn't racist, is it?" she asked, with concern. Suddenly, her thoughts went elsewhere. "Or do you think me and Weiss..." Blake trailed off as soon as she caught the look in Qrow's eyes. Knowing exactly what he just did and what she just said, Blake turned an extremely bright red as she tried to find the words. After stuttering for a bit, she simply let out a sigh.

"Yang's right. You are the absolute worst."

After a couple of moments of awkward silence, Blake simply asked, "Was it that obvious?" Getting up, Qrow looked back out the window again at Yang and Tai as he spoke. "For me? Absolutely. You almost let it slip back on the roof in Vale. Since then, I've caught the occasional glances you've given her. It's the same look I've seen on Tai's face each time Summer or Raven came back from a dangerous mission. Yang on the other hand?" Letting out a sigh, Blake asked, "So she's essentially just like Jaune?" Qrow looked at her, but seemed confused over the comparison Blake was attempting to make. Suddenly realizing he may not have known Jaune that well, Blake said, "Nevermind. I understand what you're saying." Qrow shook his head and shrugged. "Honestly? Even I don't know what I'm saying" he told her. "Keep in mind what you're asking me. It's not exactly a conversation I ever envisioned having with Ruby or Yang." To drive the point home, Qrow proceeded to do a terrible impression of a teenage girl and hold a conversation with himself.

"UNCLE QROW!"  
"Hi girls! How's it's going? Have you met any boys, or are you in the closet?"

Despite not getting a clear answer, Blake couldn't help but smile at that. She was starting to get the idea of where Yang got some of her humor from. She then got serious as she asked Qrow her next question. "You're completely ok with this?" Stepping back to the doorway, he said, "Why wouldn't I be? Human and faunus relationships aren't common, but they also aren't unheard of." Blake let out a groan. Despite her best efforts, she couldn't keep herself from facepalming. "No. I mean...well..." Qrow just put his hand up to stop Blake from going into another fit of stuttering. "This isn't anything new or strange for me Blake. Hell, Tai flat-out told me that his first mission as a hunter was to sleep with everyone on his team." Blake went completely wide-eyed as soon as Qrow said that. She wasn't quiet sure what to say.

Then, out of nowhere, Qrow destroyed the moment by laughing.

"You should have seen the look on your face!" he said, between his fits of laughter. She just shook her head at the terrible joke. "In all seriousness, don't worry about it" he told her as he retrieved a bag from the hallway. "Now, I can't say for sure if Yang is interested. However, if she's not, I can at least promise she's not going to be judgemental. No one in this family is like that." Blake let out a sigh of relief. She didn't want to admit her feelings to her partner, find out Yang wasn't interested, then have every single moment together following that be completely awkward. Tossing the bag to Blake, Qrow said, "The best advice I can give is to just dive in when you're comfortable. I've seen too many people wait until it was too late. In this job, one of two things happens. You're either going to become very good, perhaps even a professor at some point. Or..." Qrow was about to finish his thought, but paused for a moment. Blake could clearly see he had to take a moment to suppress a bad memory before he was able to finish. "Or, you're going to die very young" he said in an extremely blunt manner. "There's really no in between for us. Too many living hunters have at least one person they wish they could have said something to before it was too late. Don't become another example of that Blake."

With that, Qrow left Blake to her thoughts. She just sat in silence for a couple of minutes, as today had been a roller coaster of emotions for her. Eventually, curiosity got the best of her and she looked in the bag. Inside, she found several brand new pieces of clothing in her favorite colors. Since arriving, Blake had been stuck wearing Ruby and Yang's extra clothes. That presented two problems for the faunus. First, Ruby was smaller than Blake. While she could fit into her team leader's clothing, some of the pieces were tight enough to not leave much to the imagination. Yang's clothing on the other hand presented the opposite problem. Her sweatpants were fine, but the majority of her shirts were either tank tops or short sleeved. At this point, Blake was still self-conscious about her scars. Even if it wasn't for that, they were also a bit baggy due to their size difference. After the first hour of wearing one, Blake was suddenly very aware and careful about leaning forward too much.

Eventually, Blake settled on a shirt and some jeans. The shirt was long sleeved, purple at the top, but gradually changing to black at the bottom. At first glance, the jeans seemed to be a simple black, but upon closer inspection, Blake found the belladonna flower emblem that she tended to wear on her clothing on the left leg. It was in an extremely dark purple that nearly blended in with the black. Blake smiled, because she knew the color choices and the addition of her emblem would have been Yang's doing. She didn't know what that possibly meant about any potential feelings Yang might have, but at the very least it told her just how much her partner cared.

Shutting the door, she began changing out of her borrowed clothes. Once she was completely changed, Blake looked in the mirror and was impressed. She knew she had Yang to thank for the color choices. However, she'd need to make it a point to thank Qrow as well. Everything fit absolutely perfectly.

As she prepared to head outside, Blake's thoughts were in a couple different places. Right now, she wasn't sure if she was feeling brave enough to follow Qrow's advice and say anything to Yang. However, at the very least, she wanted have her first real discussion about events. Qrow's comment about her ears hadn't been too far off the mark. Blake wasn't one to normally spy on private discussions, but sometimes it was much easier said than done. The bits and pieces she had caught reminded her of a saying she had once heard long ago:

Behind every legend, there is a grain of truth.

* * *

 **AN: That covers Blake's portion of the chapter. Next part should wrap up the actual chapter.**

 **Blake: It was fun coming up with what I felt to be a believable backstory for Blake. However, like I said before, she can be a challenge to write for. I myself tend to do much better with laid back or sarcastic characters. Characters with Blake's personality I tend to find challenging. Overall, I felt the Schnee bits were needed. As I've mentioned, in canon we don't actually know much of Blake's past. There's no mention of parents, so it's all speculation. When new canon info does actually get revealed, I wouldn't be shocked if it involved the Schnee family in some way. To me, it seems like there was much more to her initial tension with Weiss than what was seen on the surface.**

 **Bumblebee: If there were any doubts that this fic was going in that direction, then I think this chapter squashed them. Couple things: first off, I don't do lemons. Sorry to disappoint you guys if that's all you were waiting for. Second, don't expect it to develop too quickly, but don't expect it to be at a snail's pace either.**

 **Other Ships: Not going into details on that. That's mainly because I have no clue how much some of the other characters will be featured once all of Team RWBY is together. Even if a pairing such as Flower Power shows up, it might just be hinted at rather than fully shown. I will say this however: don't expect White Rose. I don't mind stories that go there, but I myself am not a fan of that pairing, and honestly I see Bumblebee having far more potential as a canon pairing than WR.**

 **Darrah Belladonna: As always, I'm strict about sticking to Monty's naming rules. Blake's name is Old English for black. Darrah is Irish for black oak (hence the nickname). In a way, she's named after her father. While he's obviously not going to make a physical appearance, here's a description for your imagination: a 6'7" cat faunus that looks like he could have benched a small car. He would have had long black hair, a long black beard and cat ears. The hair and beard are "manely" (heh...puns...) suppose to give you the mental image of a lion.**

 **Keep your eyes open for the conclusion to _Preparations._**


	11. Preparations, Part 4

Chapter 7  
"Preparations (Part 4)"

* * *

Village of Patch, the Xiao Long home

* * *

Outside the house, Yang had just wrapped up her training for the day. She wasn't sure what to make of her progress, but she knew she was going to need to throw herself into it with nothing less than one hundred percent. While she was extremely sore, worn out, and frustrated over how sloppy she was, there was a part of her that was excited to actually be training and moving around again, despite the fact that it was for a serious reason.

Yang was sitting on a log outside her home when she eventually saw Blake walking over. She quickly saw that her friend was wearing some of the new clothing that her uncle had picked out. Giving her a thumbs up, Yang said, "Looking good! I'd say that's a pretty big improvement." Blake seemed to blush slightly as she sat to the left of Yang. "Thanks" she told Yang. "No offense, but I couldn't really do another day in your clothes or Ruby's." Yang chuckled a little at that. "At least you're close enough to Rubes size. You could at least pull it off in a pinch. Me on the other hand?" Rather than wait for a reply, Yang just glanced down. For a moment, Blake wasn't entirely sure what Yang was looking at. She followed Yang's gaze downward, then following a couple of seconds, the sudden realization of what she was staring at hit her. The faunus quickly looked away as she turned a very deep shade of red. Meanwhile, Yang couldn't control her laughter. "Made you look, you perv!" she managed to eventually say as she did her best to not fall over.

Blake's thoughts were racing at a mile a minute as her friend did this. She wasn't mad at Yang, but she wished she hadn't done that. If there were several things Yang always had at the ready, it was a terrible joke, a horrible pun, or a situation designed to playfully poke fun at her teammates. Part of her just wanted to blurt out what she was thinking, but another part felt the timing was terrible.

Then, Yang somehow managed to make things worse.

"Blake, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were falling for me!"

It took everything she had to not admit everything right there. Blake just groaned as she looked down at the ground. She felt that if she looked into Yang's eyes at that moment, there would be no denying it. Somehow, she managed to eventually get out her own laugh in an attempt to mask what she was really thinking. She felt the attempt was weak, however it seemed to convince Yang. Patting her on the back, she told Blake, "It's good to see you laughing. In fact, it almost makes things seem normal again."

At that point, Blake felt she was composed enough to look at Yang once more. Her last comment about 'normality' was actually a perfect opening for Blake to get away from the last subject. She knew that Yang was just trying to get her to cheer up, but Blake could clearly see that deep down, Yang felt those words were hollow. Blake knew what Yang was trying to say. It was in reference to simpler times, back when laughter came easier to them. However, when the subject of the past came up, it more often than not reminded both women of just how much things changed on that day.

After a few moments of silence, Blake was the first to speak. "Well, I think normal is subjective" Blake said as she motioned towards Yang's artificial arm. "We can't change what happened at Beacon, and I can't change what happened to me. But, at the same time, we shouldn't let it change the two of us to an extreme degree. At our core, we're still the same people, aren't we?" Yang appeared to be contemplating what Blake just said. Finally, she said, "I suppose you're right Blake. Granted, I look back and I see moments where I've been a bit more serious and to the point." Stopping for a moment, Yang then proceeded to grin. "But, there have also been moments where I've said something crazy and had people wanting to slap me." Blake saw a perfect opportunity for her own chance to make fun of Yang.

"So, for you it's always Tuesday?"

Yang playfully punched Blake's shoulder, but instantly wished she hadn't once she saw her wince. While the wound Blake received had healed up fairly well, the area itself was still a bit tender. She was about to apologize, but Blake shook her head and waved her off, knowing full well that hurting her was not Yang's intent. It did however draw Blake's mind towards thinking about her injuries.

"How do you deal with it?"

Yang blinked for a moment, unsure what Blake was talking about. Eventually, she pointed at Yang's arm once again. "How do you deal with everyone just staring at you?" she asked. Yang realized where Blake was going with the question, but she wasn't entirely sure her answer would help her friend. She looked at the arm and moved it around a bit as she spoke. "Honestly, I haven't given it much thought. I've seen the looks I get, but it's not something I worry about. The transition hasn't been easy, but having people stare at me is the least of my concerns. In fact, the only reason I started covering it up is for a tactical advantage. Adam would obviously know, but I don't want anyone else I might have to fight knowing about it too early."

Looking at Blake now, Yang asked, "This is about your scars, isn't it?" Blake nodded as she spoke. "Yeah. I haven't worried about most of them. However, for the first couple of days following my blinding, all I noticed were the people just looking at me. It's been a couple of months since it happened, but even now I can't help but notice once people start to stare. For someone who specializes in blending in, it's very unsettling." Blake stopped talking for a moment. She saw a questioning look in Yang's eyes and could tell she was hesitant to ask her next question. With a sigh, she decided it was best to get it over with. "I suppose this conversation was inevitable. You want to know about what happened to me." Yang seemed to pause for a moment, but she eventually nodded. Blake then said something that totally caught Yang off guard.

"Once I'm done, it'll be your turn. I need to know about the Four Maidens. I already told you I'm done running, but I need to know about everything that's happened on your end."

Yang completely froze. She had a feeling that Blake may had overheard some of their discussions. Part of her still worried that Blake wouldn't want any part of things if she knew the truth about the world. Another part didn't want to put her in danger. While no one knew what Cinder's endgame was, Yang at least knew the risks. Since learning everything, not a day went by where she didn't worry about Ruby. While she supposed that no news was a good thing in a way, she knew she wouldn't relax until she was face to face with her sister once more. Even then, there would still be the worry that one or both of them could be killed. As much as she didn't like to think about that outcome, Yang had already steeled herself for it. If the worst was going to happen, then she at least wanted to be there. That way, she could at least die trying to make a difference, rather than hearing about Ruby dying, or even worse, never hearing about any trace at all.

Yang studied Blake's face for a moment. She could see it in her eye. After everything she had experienced, nothing was going to make Blake run or abandon her team ever again. Yang was prepared to die for Ruby if she had to. Both her and Blake had bled for each other. Yang could see that Blake was ready to put her life on the line as well.

"Ok then. It's a deal."

* * *

 **AN: After much debate on the matter, I felt it was important to cover Blake's last few months sooner rather than later. As I've previously stated, these flashback chapters won't be nearly as long as Yang's. The first one will likely be the exception, as that one will mainly set the tone. The rest that follow will cover small pieces of her horrific six month ordeal. Be prepared: a couple of these might not be easy reading.**

 **Since the bulk of the coming chapters will be slightly shorter, it's possible that I may get these out a bit quicker. No promises however. Work and life have been slightly crazy. The last thing I want to do is promise a couple chapters in a week, then be unable to deliver.**

 **Keep your eyes peeled. Remember to add BWBS to your favorites if you like what you've read so far.**

 ***looks at the acronym for his story***

 **Huh...I swear that was not intentional. It's quite literally the first time I noticed how that looks. Maybe I can work that to my advantage...**

 **ADD BOOBS TO YOUR FAVORITES! XD**


	12. Memories of Beacon

Chapter 8  
"Memories of Beacon"

* * *

The Battle of Beacon, six and a half months ago

* * *

The encounter had played out in her mind many times. She imagined what her reunion with Adam would be like. As much as she attempted to run and hide from her past, the one thing that was always in the back of Blake Belladonna's mind was the fact that one day she would have to face Adam directly.

She just didn't expect it to play out like this.

So far, the battle had gone very poorly. Blake had no intention of letting this go on longer than she needed to. Deep down, she knew she had no chance in a battle with Adam. The first chance she got, she was going to get the injured student out of there and leave. However, before she could really do anything, Adam already had the upper hand. With no effort on his part, he had knocked Blake down. Just as she was recovering, Blake heard something running in from her left. Looking over, she saw a Creep coming in for the kill. With no time to react she could only brace herself. Just as it was about to tear into her, a gunshot ran out and killed it. Blake had hoped backup had arrived, but her joy was short-lived as she quickly saw her savior was none other than Adam. As she got back to her feet, he simply said one thing.

"Not before you've suffered for your betrayal, my love."

Blake frowned at that. Adam not only had every intention of drawing this out, but for him this battle was deeply personal. This was about opposite ideologies. Blake originally believed in the White Fang's mission, but as they turned more and more violent, she knew she couldn't stay in the group. Adam however, saw a traitor. He also saw a person that once denied him the one thing he wanted the most. In his mind, Blake not only needed to be eliminated, but she also needed to suffer.

Meanwhile, Blake tried not to think about what Adam had called her. There was once a point where she did look up to Adam. But, that was before that twisted side became known to her. At one point, she did love him. Adam loved her as well, and he had attempted to tell her as much. The problem was, Blake loved Adam like an older brother. While she did hide among humans, that was far from her only secret. She trusted Adam enough to share that secret with him.

Adam Taurus was the first person Blake had ever come out to.

Upon admitting that to him, it was almost like a switch had been flipped. While he had never raised a hand to her, he instantly became distant. The verbal abuse and names he called her were actually worse than what she got from humans. Blake quickly learned that he fit just about every stereotype regarding jealous former lovers. Overall, it reinforced her choices to hide her faunus heritage and not tell anyone else her other secret. Eventually, she did have to admit her secret to Sun. However, unlike Adam, he at least did what he could to help her hide it.

As he approached, Blake couldn't help but feel sadness. As recently as a few weeks ago, she was still making excuses for him. Despite the fact that he had murdered people, she felt that somehow he could be guided away from such a fanatical lifestyle. She longed for the days where life in the White Fang was simple. Adam would be the big brother she never had and no one would get hurt. Blake wasn't one that typically believed in the simple idea of black and white, good and evil. To her, the world was far more complex than that. There were good people who did bad things for the right reasons. Conversely, there were people the world would call villains. Yet, those people made decisions that would paint them in a terrible light while improving conditions for others. However, she now knew without doubt that if there was anyone who could be considered pure evil, it was Adam Taurus.

Without warning, Adam drew Wilt and slashed at Blake's head. She was quick to dodge the blow and proceeded to fight back. Three quick slashes from Gambol Shroud were quickly parried by the combination of Wilt and Blush. Blake attempted to attack again, but following a dodge, Adam had brought the barrel of Blush to her face. On pure instinct, Blake summoned a shadow clone as Adam pulled the trigger. As the clone dissipated, she managed to get to his right side. Before she could react however, he had already managed to bring the hilt of his sword around and hit her in the stomach. Blake quickly went to her knees from the unexpected blow. Before she could do anything else, Adam aimed a hard kick to the back of her head.

Blake dropped her weapon as she fell to the ground. Her vision blurred as she frantically searched for Gambol Shroud. Just as her eyesight came back to her, Adam grabbed her by the hair. Pulling her up, he whispered into her ear, "I hope you're paying attention." Before she could figure out what was going on, Adam made her face the unconscious student she was attempting to save. Without warning, he proceeded to shoot him. Blake's eyes went wide with horror at the sight. Even without her weapon, she was about to make an attempt to fight back. Before she could do so however, Adam threw her back towards Gambol Shroud, then turning his attention back to the dead student, he proceeded to unload the rest of his ammo on the body. Blake was completely shocked as she laid on the ground. Adam however, let out a menacing laugh as he turned his attention back to Blake.

"And now, the spark has lit the fire, my love."

Blake could only look at him with disgust. Adam needed to be stopped. The problem was, she wasn't sure how to go about doing it. Their skill levels were just too far apart. There was also the fact that he knew her every move. Blake wasn't even sure how to begin fighting back.

Adam saw the look he was getting from Blake. While she didn't know what he was thinking, she could at least tell it had angered him. Sheathing his weapon, he said, "Don't be so naive Blake. All those thefts? All those missions for the White Fang? That was training! We were training for this moment! The moment we would rise up and start the Faunus War once again!" Shaking her head, Blake told him, "No! That's what YOU wanted!" Once she said that, Adam let his anger and rage fully take over. As he took a step forward, he screamed, "YOU FOOL! This could have been our day! Can't you see that?" Blake struggled to her knees. Was he really this blind? How could Adam think a full-blown war was the answer? Blake attempted to hold her tears back as she spoke. "I never wanted this!" she said, as she tightened her grip on Gambol Shroud. "I wanted equality! I WANTED PEACE!" As he took another step forward, Blake saw a chance to do something unexpected. Transforming her weapon to its handgun form, she quickly attempted to shoot Adam at point-blank range. Yet, Adam proved he was always ready for anything. With a quick, simple motion, he drew Wilt halfway out and used Blake's rounds to charge the weapon. As it began to glow red, he screamed out in rage.

"WHAT YOU WANT IS IMPOSSIBLE!"

Suddenly sheathing the weapon again, Adam quickly delivered a forceful backhand to Blake's face. Getting knocked back down once more, she noted how unsettling it was once Adam switched back to a calm, normal voice. "But, I understand" he said with no hint of anger. It was almost like he was scolding a young child now. Then, things took a creepy turn.

"Because all I want, is you, Blake."

Blake saw that disgusting grin on his face. She didn't even want to begin to imagine what he was thinking. Letting her own anger get the best of her, Blake attempted to point her weapon in his direction and shoot at him. Adam was starting to grow tired of this game. Before she could pull the trigger again, he kicked Blake hard. The force of the impact sent Gambol Shroud flying away. Deep down, he felt that he should just kill her. It would be so much easier to just end this. However, she was a traitor to him. Even worse, she had denied his love. To him, that was unforgivable.

No, he would continue this. He would deny Blake the death she deserved, until every last ounce of misguided hope was drained. Adam took another step towards her and eventually kneeled down as he spoke. "As I set out upon this world and deliver the justice mankind so greatly deserves, I will make it my mission to destroy everything you love." Adam's thoughts turned very impure as he debated how he would begin. She was beaten, disarmed, and completely at his mercy. She would not deny him this time. However, fate apparently had other ideas.

"BLAKE! Blake, where are you?!"

The sound of another woman's voice drew the attention of both faunus. Adam turned just in time to see a young blonde quickly knock out one of his men with Shot Gauntlets. As he looked back at Blake, he could see the fear on her face. Part of him wanted to ask Blake if this was her lover, but sometimes actions spoke much louder than words. Adam smirked as he drew Wilt once more. He savored that look of fear on Blake's face as he spoke.

"Starting with her."

Before she could even react, Adam drove Wilt right into Blake's abdomen. Adam's Semblance allowed him to penetrate nearly any aura. The trade-off was that his own aura was very weak. However, all Adam needed was one good blow. Many people didn't expect him to be able to do such a thing. Therefore, many battles ended before the victim knew what happened. Meanwhile, when charged, his weapon could burn almost anything. That combination easily made Adam an extremely dangerous man to face. Any blow from him could easily end someone's life. In this particular case, a charged Wilt driven into someone with Aura was counterproductive. It's burning effect would quickly cauterize the wound. However, that was precisely what he wanted. He needed Blake to draw this woman in. He also wanted Blake to see everything he would do to her.

Meanwhile, Blake tried to resist screaming out. She felt Wilt's edge plunge right into her stomach. Then, she felt it go right through her back. Blake felt the burning sensation as Adam let the blade linger inside her for a moment. She knew he purposely avoided her vitals. Her abdomen and back felt like they were on fire, and she thought she was going to be sick from the smell of burning flesh and blood. To scream out would be to betray Yang. However, the pain was far too great. Within moments, she let out her anguished cry.

Finally, there was Yang. As soon as she heard the scream, she knew Blake was nearby. She first saw the body of a student riddled with bullet wounds. Then, she saw Blake. She was laying on the ground wounded. Her attacker was a man wearing a Grimm mask. While he wasn't dressed like the rest of them, there was no doubt in Yang's mind that this was a member of the White Fang. But, that was not important to Yang. Seeing one of her best friends injured in such a way set off a rage that Yang had never felt before.

The next few moments only took about five seconds, yet it was almost like time slowed for all involved.

"Get away from her!" Yang shouted as she powered herself up. She didn't catch the begging, pleading look on Blake's face as she told her to stay away. Blake's attacker sheathed his weapon and just smirked at Yang. That was the last straw for Yang. With her eyes flashing red and her aura flaring up around her, she let out an inhuman scream as she used Ember Celica to launch herself forward. Yang was not a killer, but she wouldn't be satisfied with knocking him out.

She was going to rip his damn heart out and show it to him as he died. At least that's how events played out in her mind. Instead, things went very differently.

After wounding her in an attempt to draw Yang in, Blake was only able to watch helplessly as her friend rushed in. It had all happened so fast. Blake's mind barely had time to register what was going on. Panic gripped her once she saw the blood splatter on the ground. At first, she feared the worst and had thought Adam killed her on the spot. It wasn't until Blake saw her right arm hit the ground that she realized Adam was going to do what he did best.

He was going to take his time with the two of them.

Blake knew she would have one chance to get them both out of there. If she did, it would mainly be due to the fact that Adam did everything slowly and deliberately. He had his back to them and simply admired his work as he watched Yang's right arm and bracer burn to ash. As wounded as she was, Blake somehow managed to get back to her feet, get over to Yang and pick her up. She knew she was going to need a distraction. If this failed, they were both going to die right here. Blake would not allow Adam to take his time with her. She was going to make sure he knew that he'd have to kill her. Already weak, she couldn't afford to mess this up. Focusing as much as she could, she attempted to summon a shadow clone. What happened next shocked her.

Instead of a clone of herself, Blake managed to summon a clone of Yang.

Blake blinked for a moment at the sight. She tried to think about how that was even possible, but she was at a complete loss. How did she do it? Why did she do it? Blake didn't know. In fact, she didn't really care. The main goal was getting the two of them out of there. A second clone would help, but she needed to be quick now. Adam wasn't going to wait forever. Her head hurt as she focused once more and attempted to concentrate. Eventually, she managed to summon a clone of herself laying in the spot Adam had left her. That was enough for Blake. With both clones ready, Blake didn't waste any time. Using the last ounce of strength she had left, she somehow got Yang up and took the long way around. As she ran by Adam, she quickly picked up Gambol Shroud and sheathed it. Getting both arms around Yang, Blake continued to run. Eventually, she heard Adam say something, but Blake was too far away to hear it. She assumed he was speaking to her clones and hoped that by the time he noticed, the two of them would have some distance.

As she ran, part of Blake worried about Adam following them. Yang's wound was quickly sealed by Wilt when she lost her arm. Blake risked looking at it and instantly regretted it. It took everything she had to keep herself from throwing up over the gruesome sight. Part of her felt this was her fault, but then she quickly realized that charging up Wilt might have been the best thing for Yang. Had the weapon been uncharged, the wound would have never been cauterised. Blake suddenly realized that if it hadn't been for her ill-advised actions, Yang would likely have died from the blood loss. It was a small comfort as she ran.

Blake was doing the best she could, but she was not faring well. She had taken a beaten from Adam, and been impaled once his sword was powered up. Despite the wound being sealed shut, all the extra effort and movement had managed to open it up again. What was left of her aura did slow the bleeding down somewhat, but it was too much. Eventually, Blake could feel her aura disappear. Once that happened, it was almost like the floodgates had opened. Blake was going to need medical attention soon, or else she was going to die.

Yang was slowly starting to become heavier in Blake's arms. There were no Grimm or White Fang around, but that didn't settle the nerves of the young faunus. Risking a look back, she half expected to see Adam. He apparently wasn't following them, but it did nothing to calm Blake. Instead, worry began to rise as she saw just how much of a blood trail she was starting to leave. Was the body really suppose to have this much blood? Blake didn't get very long to ponder it. That was the point her strength finally gave out. Her arms felt like rubber as she dropped Yang. A few seconds later, her legs gave out, and she fell face first to the ground.

 _Not like this. This can't be how it all ends._

Blake's vision was starting to blur as she heard footsteps. Looking up, she saw a figure in white approaching and instantly assumed it was a White Fang member. There would be no way in hell she'd go down without a fight. With the last of her strength, Blake pulled out her weapon, converted it to its handgun form and with a very unsteady hand, took aim. Just as she was about to pull the trigger, she realized her mistake.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE BLAKE! It's me!"

Blake painfully let out a sigh of relief once she heard the voice of Weiss Schnee. Three more figures were bringing up the rear. Once they drew a bit closer, Blake could see that it was Coco, Sun and Velvet. Weiss attempted to turn Blake onto her back as she let her weapon drop. Blake could see the concern on the face of Weiss as she turned to face the others. "She's hurt bad! Coco, I'm going to need your scarf. We've got to use something to stop the bleeding until we can get a medical team here." Under normal circumstances, Coco would have objected to anyone touching her scarf. All things considered, this was about as far from a normal situation as they could get. Coco certainly wasn't going to let another huntress die from blood loss, so she gave it up without protesting. Blake was about to tell them to focus on Yang, but quickly found she didn't have to. "Oh my...YANG!" It was Sun's voice. Blake was too weak to turn towards Yang, but she was able to see Weiss. As soon as she looked over, Blake saw the shock on her face. At one point, Blake didn't think it was possible for Weiss to become any more pale, but what little color she did have in her face seemed to completely drain away as soon as she saw the wound. Coco was the next to speak. "Velvet! You're the fastest one out of all of us! Find some help and get them here quickly!" Blake didn't hear a reply from the rabbit faunus. Instead, she heard rapid footsteps as the girl ran to find help.

Weiss was using Coco's scarf to put pressure on Blake's wound. As for Blake, she couldn't help it anymore. Her tears were flowing freely as she gave them the quick version of events. "He was just too powerful. I shouldn't have stopped to fight Adam, but there was a helpless student. I couldn't save him. Adam just murdered him right in front of me." Sun was now with Weiss, while Coco tended to Yang. Blake could see from the look of confusion that Sun had no idea who she was talking about. The look of pure rage on the face of Weiss told Blake that she wouldn't have to explain much. "The leader of the White Fang is here?!" she said, barely able to contain herself. Weiss looked half ready to run off to battle, but she was thankfully stopped by Sun. "Yeah...very bad idea" he told her. "You've got Blake and Yang injured. No offense, but if the two of them couldn't stop him, then you're not going to do better alone. Besides, if he didn't follow them to finish them off, he's likely long gone." Blake didn't believe he was gone. Part of her still worried he'd show up out of nowhere and kill them all. However, it seemed to make Weiss realize that running off would be suicide.

Blake completely broke down as she laid on the ground. Unable to contain herself, she cried as she spoke. "You can't let Yang die. We can't lose her. I can't lose my partner!" Weiss did the best she could to comfort her friend. Meanwhile, Sun knew of Blake's secret and was able to read between the lines. For her sake, he didn't say anything that would expose that fact. "Don't worry" he said as he kneeled down near them. "Velvet should be back soon. We're going to do everything we can for her." Blake calmed down a bit, but she still felt terrible about the entire turn of events. For a few months now, there was a feeling in the back of her mind she ignored. Yang's interests seemed to lie elsewhere, otherwise she would have said something. Nearly losing her had made Blake realize that she couldn't deny it any longer.

She loved Yang, and regardless of how Yang felt, Blake couldn't live without her.

* * *

 **AN: Originally, this was going to cut back to the hospital. Adam was going to make Blake go on the run, then we'd see the key moments as Blake struggled to stay alive. However, the hospital chapter needed a Beacon flashback to fully work. Adam needed to be established a bit more, then before I knew it, I had an entire chapter on my hands. Following this, the next few will be quicker shots. The first few Blake chapters with cover the initial days on her own. Then, it'll move on to the big moments as her injuries begin to stack up.**

 **Sun: He's one of the big hurdles regarding Bumblebee. There's plenty to suggest that Midnight Sun could just as easily be a canon pairing, however I ultimately think that due to hints that have been dropped in show and behind the scenes, Bumblebee is just as likely to win out. For this story, Sun is in on Blake's secret. I figure she would have told him around the time of the dance. Since then, he's essentially done what he could to keep up appearances for Blake.**

 **Adam: It's funny. While he had every intention to kill the train crew, for the better part of two years the fanbase figured he'd be some misunderstood villain. Some people thought he might eventually become an anti-hero. Once the creepy part of his character was in the open, everyone seemed to turn on him instantly. I'm a fairly recent member of the fanbase. I only started watching RWBY just before the Volume 3 premiere. Even then, I felt Adam being a noble villain would be too obvious. I was pleasantly surprised (and extremely creeped out) when he turned out to be the opposite of what folks predicted. If you got a stalker/potential rapist vibe from him, then perhaps I did my job a little too well ^_^()**  
 **As for his powers, based on the little we've seen of him in action, it seems like under the right circumstances, Adam can destroy nearly anything. Going off theory and headcanon at the time of writing, I'm going to say his Semblance can allow him to break through aura with the trade off being weakening his own.**

 **Blake: The show doesn't flat out say it, but it is suggested that Blake managed to make a clone of Yang. Adam approaches Yang, attacks Blake's clone, then once that disappears, he turns to see the two of them escaping. The tail end of Volume 3 seemed to have several members of Team RWBY tap into more powerful versions of their Semblances.**

 **Let me apologize to all the Blake fans now. These next few chapters are going to suck. Brace yourselves.**


	13. Ultimatum

Chapter 9  
"Ultimatum"

* * *

City of Vale, one day after the Fall of Beacon (FoB)

* * *

 _How could everything have gone wrong so quickly?_

That was the main thought on Blake's mind. Right now, her main goal was simply to just rest and recover. She was lying in a hospital bed, eyes closed. However, sleep refused to come as there was far too much on her mind. For the last 24 hours, it was really the only thing she could think about. Right now, the final match of the Vytal Festival Tournament should be taking place. Instead, Beacon was in tatters. It would still be some time before the full extent of the damage was known, but, for all intents and purposes, its days as a school for the next generation of huntsmen were over. There were so many other factors as well. The loss of the CCTS was a huge, world altering event. Overnight, worldwide communication had been set back nearly 100 years. While scrolls would still retain their ability to save various forms of data, the ability to use them for communications was lost. Meanwhile, Vale itself managed to stand for the most part, but the eastern sections of the city were lost to the Grimm. The surviving Atlas troops, Beacon's students and staff, and even the Vale PD were doing everything they could to barricade the rest of the city and push the Grimm back to Beacon. The early signs seemed to suggest that the battle for Vale would be won, but the cost would be huge. Beacon had quickly become just like Mountain Glenn. In a mere 24 hours, the sheer number of Grimm located within the former school had become alarming. The good news? They weren't advancing. However, in the bits and pieces of news Blake had heard, it seemed their numbers swelled with each passing hour. She didn't even want to think about what would happen to Vale if the Grimm suddenly decided to act.

Then there were all the other unexplained parts. Looking back, she now had a strong feeling that Mercury and his team were the ones calling the shots. As far as Blake could tell, they were after something at Beacon. Yet, none of it made any sense to her. What was his leader's name? Cinder? Blake was fairly certain that was it, but she couldn't for the life of her remember the woman's last name. At the time, Blake only saw another potential opponent in the tournament. It was one of those details she hadn't committed to memory, mainly because there were so many people and teams competing. In hindsight, she wished she had paid more attention. Was there a telltale sign they could have caught in time?

Even if there was some sort of warning, it didn't explain the connection to the White Fang. Blake grew up with the group. She saw Adam as a tough, older brother. However, as time went on, she saw that sadistic side of him surface more and more. It got even worse once she denied his advances. Adam was not a person who would willingly work with a human. Hypothetically, he could have bled to death on the side of the road. If a human had offered to save his life, he would have refused. That made the fact that he was apparently working for Cinder even more confusing.

Blake didn't give it much more thought. Thinking about Adam drew her attention to the woman in the bed to her left. Opening her eyes for a moment, she could only stare at where Yang's arm had once been before shutting them again. The shock and suddenness of the wound had instantly put her into a coma. Following treatment, the doctors felt it best to keep her under for a few days while her body and aura attempted to repair the damage. Blake couldn't stop blaming herself for the injury. She knew that she stood no realistic chance of defeating him. While there is no such thing as an invincible opponent, the skill difference between Adam and herself was just too great. Part of her felt that Yang would have never been thrown into such a life altering situation had she never engaged Adam. Yet, on the other hand, Blake wouldn't have been able to live with herself if she simply left that student to Adam's mercy. In the end, her actions didn't change anything, but by at least being there, he had a small chance despite things not working out.

Finally, something had happened to Ruby. Just as Yang and Blake were getting loaded up for evacuation, there was a brilliant flash from the top of Beacon Tower. No one knew what had happened at the time, but apparently Ruby managed to get to the top of the tower in a last-ditch attempt to stop Cinder and help Pyrrha. Sadly, she couldn't get there in time. According to Qrow's account of events, Pyrrha had already been injured by Cinder. Qrow was too far away to reach them, while Ruby made it up top just as Cinder landed the death-blow. Past that, Qrow wouldn't elaborate. The only things that Blake knew for sure were that the Grimm Dragon had somehow been stopped, Pyrrha had been killed, Cinder was missing, and Ruby was also in a coma. There were too many unanswered questions. Blake hadn't seen a vehicle near the tower when that flash occurred, so she was at a loss as to how Qrow managed to witness everything. She was trying to piece everything together when a sudden, strange-sounding knock caught her attention. Blake was about to look towards the door as her eyes opened, but instead she froze in fear as her gaze passed over the window.

A rope was dangling just outside. It held none other than Adam Taurus.

Once they got the bleeding to stop, Blake's injuries were deemed to be non-life threatening. As a result, she wasn't hooked up to a heart monitor. Part of her was wishing she was. Perhaps then, someone would notice the spike in her heart rate and come to investigate. Her mind raced as she frantically looked around the room. Suddenly, she remembered Qrow was with them. Blake looked to her right, ready to scream for him to help.

Instead, she found an empty chair on the far side of the room.

All she could do was curse under her breath. She could have sworn she hadn't gotten any actual sleep. When did he manage to leave? Panicking even more now, her eyes darted to a dresser in the corner. When they were brought in, Blake and Yang had their salvageable clothing sealed in bags and stored in the dresser along with some replacement clothing that had been provided by the hospital. Also, since they were huntresses, they had been allowed to have their weapons stored within the room minus their ammo. The remaining half of Ember Celica sat on top, while Gambol Shroud rested in the corner. Trying to act quickly, Blake attempted to get across the room and arm herself. However, she was still weak from losing so much blood, so she instead stumbled and fell. Pulling herself back up, she made eye contact with Adam and was simply about to scream for help when she noticed he was pointing to Yang. Blake glanced over.

There was a laser sight hovering right on Yang's forehead.

Blake just froze once she saw it. Adam had them both dead to rights. She couldn't think of a more cowardly way to finish what he started. Try as she might, Blake just couldn't see a way out of this. Yet, there was a problem. If this was Adam's gameplan, then why hadn't he signaled for his sniper to pull the trigger?

Looking back to the window, Blake saw that Adam was motioning for her to come closer. The last thing she wanted was to be within five miles of him. Yet, she knew deep down that if she didn't do this, Adam would have Yang killed. Against her better judgement, Blake opened the window.

Adam wasted no time telling her what he wanted. "I'm going to make this very simple for you Blake. You're going to get dressed and grab your weapon. Then, you'll come up to the roof. Once you're there, I'll explain more. If you don't do this, your girlfriend dies. Take too long, she dies. Try anything strange, shout for help, do anything I don't like and she will die." Blake just glared at him. Adam wasn't usually one to get to the point so quickly. That told her two things: he was completely serious with his threat and she was on a deadline. Something told her Weiss or Qrow may have very well been on the way back at that moment. The room she was in was just below the roof, about eight stories up. Assuming they were coming from the ground floor, that gave her perhaps five minutes at best. Blake knew she didn't have much choice. She wasn't going to call Adam's bluff and she sure as hell wasn't going to give him a chance to add even more bodies to the pile.

"So, have I made myself clear?" he asked with a smirk. Blake didn't even attempt to hide the disgust and contempt in her voice as she answered.

"Crystal."

* * *

 **AN: Yeah, I know. In the real world, you are NOT carrying a weapon into the hospital unless you're law enforcement. Good thing Remnant isn't the real world :P**

 **I figured the general mindset would be hunters and huntresses would get a pass. After all, if things got really bad and a massive Grimm invasion were to occur, an injured huntsman who had access to their weapon would be far more useful than someone who was unarmed. Of course, admittedly this was more for the sake of putting Blake's weapon into her hands. I'll admit, I may have slightly put myself into a corner on the way she described this going down.**

 **Coming up next time: Blake's six month long fight for survival begins.**


	14. Forced to Flee

Chapter 10  
"Forced to Flee"

* * *

City of Vale, one day after FoB

* * *

Once the ultimatum was delivered by Adam, Blake wasted very little time. It quickly became apparent that Adam was not going to leave until she was ready. Blake knew stalling wasn't an option. In fact, it would most likely get her and Yang killed. With no choice in the matter, she quickly changed out of the hospital gown and into the replacement clothes that the hospital had provided. Knowing she was being watched as she undressed made her feel very uneasy. However, the constant red light that silently hovered over Yang's head reminded her what was at stake. The clothes weren't much. Just a simple white shirt and a grey pair of sweatpants. Blake wasn't going to be picky however. The whole situation was obviously a trap. Yet, with no options, Blake could only play along. At the very least, they were easy to move in. Deep down, Blake had a feeling she was going to need something like that. Once she had her boots on, Adam finally climbed the rope back to the roof. Blake followed him, but gave one last lingering look to Yang.

I've got a real bad feeling about this. This is going to be the last time I see you, isn't it? She let out a sigh at that thought. I can't think like that. No matter what he has in mind, I will find a way back. If she had been awake, Yang would have seen the sad look in Blake's eyes as she said her parting words.

"I'm going to return. Count on it. I just don't know how long it's going to take."

With that, Blake climbed the rope towards an uncertain future. Once she was on the roof, she quickly took in her surroundings. She saw a security camera on the wall near a fire escape. Adam seemed to know exactly what she was thinking and was quick to let Blake know help wasn't coming. "It's a real shame the cameras aren't working" he told her. At first, Blake assumed they had disabled the cameras. Yet, if that was the case, shouldn't hospital security be alerted? Blake didn't have to wonder about that for long as Adam was quick to explain. "The CCTS. Humanity's greatest accomplishment. It has now become its greatest downfall." Adam now gestured off into the distance. Even with her night vision, Blake could barely make out the shattered frame of Beacon Tower in the darkness. Her eyes remained on the Grimm Dragon that sat frozen on the top like a statue. Meanwhile, Adam kept talking. "I'll assure you, working with my beneficiary was not my first choice. Let's just say she had her ways of being persuasive. With that said, I can't argue with the results. The humans came to rely on their precious communication system far too much. If it was related to data in any form and was on the city power grid, then it got routed to that tower." Blake was now looking at Adam as he pointed at the camera. "Do you have any idea what this means for the White Fang? People can't call for help. Security cameras are blind. We have the upper hand now. All we need to do is plan accordingly."

Blake had heard enough. She didn't see any way out of this nightmare. Part of her had a feeling she knew where this was going. As much as the thought disgusted her, if she had to play along and rejoin the Fang she would do it. The only thing that mattered to Blake now was keeping Yang safe. With a heavy heart, she asked Adam, "I suppose this is where you ask me to come back to the White Fang in exchange for my life?" As soon as she asked that, Adam began to laugh. The sound was extremely unsettling to Blake. It was the laugh of a madman, the laugh of someone who had zero regard for life. In any other situation, a person would have run away quickly once they heard that sound. It actually took everything Blake had to not run or draw her weapon. Besides, she knew the consequences if she did something like that. She might be able to save herself with a little luck, but Yang wouldn't be so lucky.

Adam eventually stopped laughing. Seeming to sense the thought that crossed Blake's mind, he instinctively put his hand on the hilt of his own weapon. In truth, he had no fear of her trying anything. Right now, Adam held the cards. His action as he spoke was more of a reminder of who was in charge. "Are you now regretting your poor choices in life Blake? The White Fang will not be requiring your services, my dear. Quite the opposite. This meeting is solely to inform you of one thing." Adam simply smirked as he said his next words. "You are going to die."

Out of the corner of Blake's eye, she caught a quick flash of the laser sight. Before anything could happen, she quickly left a shadow clone behind and flipped backwards. As she landed on her feet, her hand went to her weapon. She was ready to draw Gambol Shroud, but Adam was already in her face. Before she could react, he had already delivered a knee to her stomach. It was a well placed blow, aimed right where she had been stabbed the night before. Blake was instantly sapped of her strength and fell to her knees. Not only was the air knocked out of her, but she also felt the wound open up once again. As she struggled to catch her breath, Adam punched her in the back at the location of the exit wound for good measure. Her weakened aura and the bandages would ensure she wouldn't bleed out, but there was no doubt in Blake's mind that those wounds were now going to leave permanent scars. However, the thought of scars didn't worry her. Blake felt a need to defend herself, but she wished she had just let him kill her. The actions of the sniper were clearly designed to bait her into attacking. She now greatly feared what was going to happen to Yang and braced herself for the sound of the gunshot.

It never came.

Confused, Blake eventually found the strength to get to her feet. Adam simply stood there with a smug expression on his face. "That, my love, was merely a test. It's clear that deep down, you still feel you have something worth losing. But, do not mistake my mercy for kindness. The first one was free. Starting now, if you step out of line, your friends will die." He began to laugh once more before continuing. "Truthfully, I don't know who I'm going to kill first. It's obvious that the blonde would really upset you. Yet, I feel if we killed her, I wouldn't be able to control you as easily. Perhaps we could start with the young one. Or even better, how about Weiss? I wonder what her father would think if I sent him her head in a box." With each passing word, Blake became more and more sick at the thought that she once considered Adam a brother. She was growing tired of this.

"What do you want me to do?"

If it wasn't for the fact that he kept talking in that monotone voice, Blake would have sworn that Adam's response contained mock joy. "Finally, you asked the right question" he said, slowly clapping as he spoke. "I told you two things at Beacon: you would run, and you would suffer. We've already done the suffering, but rest assured, there will be plenty more of that. It's time to take care of that other part." Adam then pointed out in the direction of Forever Fall. "There's a small peninsula to the northeast of this district. It's just outside of the city limits. I've got a Bullhead with a couple of White Fang members on it. They'll be expecting you. As for where you'll be going, you'll learn more once you're on board." Once again, Blake could sense this was leading into a trap for her. She had hoped that along the way, she would find her chance to end this. If she could somehow warn the others, she would rob Adam of any power he held over her. Yet again, Adam showed his ability to think ahead and plan for what she might do. "You've got 30 minutes Blake. If you aren't there, one of your friends gets transported to the morgue. You won't see them, but I assure you that someone in the White Fang will be watching. If at any point we feel you're trying to come back here or warn your friends, then we're going to skip the part where I randomly pick someone. They'll all die." Blake was about to say something, but Adam cut her off by looking at a watch he was wearing. "I'm sorry, did I say 30 minutes?" he asked in a mocking tone. "I lost track of time. It's closer to 20 minutes. You might want to get moving."

Blake once again suppressed the urge to attack Adam. Even on her best day, the distance he expected her to run in 20 minutes would have pushed it. Injured with a weakened aura? The odds were against her and Blake seriously doubted she was going to make it. But, for the sake of the other members of Team RWBY, she had to try. With no options and no real plan, Blake ran across the roof and jumped to the next building. Whatever happened, she made a promise to herself.

This would be the last time Adam would force her to run away. Once things were on her terms, he would see her coming for him.

* * *

 **AN: Just a heads up. Despite the intent to get these Blake chapters out fast, there might be a slight delay on the next one. I'll be out of town over the weekend. Following that it's back to work. Next day off following that isn't really going to feel like one due to appointments. As much as I've enjoyed writing this, life comes first and I cannot always spend all my free time on this.**

 **Quick note regarding Qrow since I'm sure someone will catch it. Way back in** ** _Awakening to a New Reality,_ Qrow mentioned being out of the room no more than five minutes. Once he got back, Blake was gone. Without any trace of White Fang members, the general assumption was she ran on her own. I'll be first to admit, five minutes is a very tight timeframe for all this to happen in. The initial chapters were written in late February. The basic idea behind Blake's departure was always there, but obviously the chapter itself wasn't written. If anything, I suppose we could chalk any time discrepancy up to the fact that this is Qrow we're talking about.**

 **This time around, I wish to reply to a couple reviews. First off, I read every single one I get. Even if I don't reply to you, don't take it personally. I'm glad so many of you are enjoying the story so far. I mainly want to reply to observations, the occasional constructive criticism, and even the not so constructive reviews.**

 **drunkdragon: Glad to see you've been enjoying the story. Regarding grammar and formatting: it is a bit of a style choice for me. On occasion, I will sometimes break apart quotes into a new line or paragraph, but I overall prefer to keep quotes related to a certain line of thought or event together. I've seen plenty of fics where someone will literally start a new line each time someone speaks. The end result looks like this:**

 **"Hey, how's it going?"**

 **"Going great! Want to get some lunch and catch a movie?"**

 **"Nah, I already ate, but I don't mind if you want to get something on the way."**

 **"Sounds like a plan!"**

 **While there are situations where that works, overall I find it to be messy to literally start a new line for each sentence in a conversation. People tend to overdo that in my mind. I've actually read fics where an entire screen will look like that above example. In extreme cases, that'll go on for more than a full screen. If that goes on too long I'll actually find myself going back to figure out who is saying what.**  
 **Generally speaking, as long as it's no more than two characters, a conversation regarding the same general thought/event will be contained to a single paragraph in my stories. Even so, I'm not unreasonable. If multiple people don't care for it, then by all means let me know. I'm looking to improve as a writer, so if you guys think it's messy then tell me. I'll do what I can to adjust and possibly look into reformatting the early chapters if multiple folks don't care for it.**  
 **Also, yes. That was indeed a Street Fighter reference. Like so many others, I have a fondness for that quote and liked the idea of doing a shout out in a lighthearted way ^_~**

 **Why: "I don't understand why people place Adam so far and beyond Blake combat wise."**  
 **To an extent, I can see where you are coming from. Yet, you need to keep in mind the fact that Adam is suppose to be a major villain. There have been plenty of cases where you'll see someone working with a hero early in a story. Later on, that character turns out to be a villain. Despite seemingly being equal, it's not uncommon for a hero to get their ass handed to them in such a situation. Emotional stress or not, I cannot see Blake managing to stand up to him at that point. Keep in mind that much of that fight was off screen. Following the Creep coming in, it cuts away. At the next time we see them, several minutes have passed. Blake is still on the ground. I highly doubt she simply decided to lounge there.**  
 **Adam is intended to be a threat. If Blake was truly equal to or better than Adam, then I doubt Yang would have been put into the situation that got her arm cut off. Villains add tension to a story. The heroes don't always match up to them early on. When they do, there is no tension. Everyone just assumes everything is going to be ok. I think that's part of the reason why so many folks in the fandom seemed to get caught off guard by the end of Volume 3, even despite the hints that things were eventually going to go poorly for the heroes.**

 **That'll do it for now. Hopefully, I won't have too much of a delay on the next chapter. Rest assured, this story will not be abandoned until I feel it's done. Even when Volume 4 inevitably gets released, this will be ongoing until it's finished.**


	15. Racing Against Time

Chapter 11  
"Racing Against Time"

* * *

City of Vale, one day after FoB

* * *

How long had it been? 11 minutes? Or was it closer to 12?

Blake tried her best to shake the negative thoughts as she got outside the city limits. If there was one thing her days with the White Fang taught her, it was the ability to keep a good mental grasp on time. Some of the missions she had gone on as one of their members had been timed down to the second. Many of the situations she and other members found themselves in had no room for error. Any number of things could have gone wrong if she was a second too early or too late. Under normal circumstances, being able to mentally keep track of time without a watch was highly useful. Yet, at this moment, all it did was stress Blake out even more. All things considered, she was making decent time. The run across the city rooftops took its toll, but Blake did manage to quickly and efficiently get as far as she could before it was unfeasible. Once that point came, she dropped down to the streets. Recent events left them deserted. Following the Fall of Beacon, people were too afraid to step outside. While her wounds slowed her down slightly, the circumstances couldn't have been better. Yet, Blake couldn't shake that feeling of dread.

 _This is taking too long! Adam's going to kill one of them!_

Blake had just counted past the 15 minute mark in her mind as she hit the edge of the forest. If anything, the constant urge to not fail her friends was the one thing that kept Blake from giving in to the exhaustion and pain. She still didn't know how she was going to get out of this situation. In fact, part of her still had a fear that she wouldn't. Even if Adam didn't hurt them, one mistake on Blake's part would mean that Team RWBY would likely never find out what became of her. All they would have to go on is an open window and her personal items gone. Naturally, they would assume that she ran away from things once again. What would happen if she didn't get back to them? Would they suspect something had gone wrong, or would her team simply think that she had abandoned them at their lowest point?

Blake did her best to quiet those thoughts as she hit 17 minutes. Thankfully, the path was mostly clear. The peninsula in question was on the very edge of Forever Fall. As long as Blake watched her step along the cliffs, she didn't have to venture directly into the forest itself. While an occassional tree stump or log did force her to watch where she ran, it was definitely better than going into the forest and attempting to find the direct path. If time was not an issue, that's exactly what Blake would have done. However, the last thing she needed was to venture even slightly into Forever Fall. Blake's mind was a mess at the moment and while she wasn't bleeding heavily, there was just enough blood to put the scent into the air for any Grimm that could have lurked in the dark. Those two things combined would be enough to draw them directly to her. In fact, she wasn't entirely sure that there weren't Grimm nearby.

Yet, she didn't have to think about that for long. The line of trees stopped as Blake hit the clearing at the edge of the peninsula. Slowing down a bit, Blake noted that she was just slightly over 19 minutes as she gasped for air. However, there wasn't a Bulkhead waiting. There weren't any White Fang members either. Blake knew there was no possible way she was late. Adam knew her too well. Even despite everything that occurred between them, he would have never said 20 minutes or less if he felt there was no way that Blake couldn't make it in that timeframe. Something about the situation wasn't right. Thinking this could have all been a ruse to get her out of the hospital, Blake began to turn around when the sound of a twig breaking in the distance caught her attention. Her hand had instantly went to Gambol Shroud, but by that point it was already too late as the shot rang out. The round hit her squarely in the center of the chest. Panic gripped Blake as she let out a shocked gasp. In the back of her mind, she thought getting shot would hurt far more, yet it felt more like a sting. As her hand traveled to the wound, she instantly discovered why. Blake hadn't been shot with a normal bullet. Instead, she found a dart just above her heart. Almost on cue, her legs suddenly decided to stop working as she found herself suddenly unable to support her own weight. It didn't take her long to piece together what had happened.

She had been shot with a tranquilizer.

Blake knew there wasn't much she could do at this point. Her legs had already quit on her and her arms weren't too far behind. All she could do was wait for the drugs to take their full effect. At the very least, she knew Adam wasn't going to kill her outright, but the thought didn't do much to comfort her. Hearing footsteps approaching, she attempted to look in the direction they were coming from, but even that proved to be far too taxing at the moment.

"It's a real shame you turned around when you did Belladonna. I was actually aiming for your arm. Was kinda hoping you'd put up a fight so I could pound your face in."

If she could have groaned, Blake would have done so. The voice belonged to Keir. Even before she had become disillusioned with the White Fang, he was the one member she didn't trust from the start. His answer to nearly everything involved brute force. _Perhaps that's the reason Adam likes him so much_ she thought bitterly. Blake couldn't move, but she wouldn't give the creep the satisfaction of getting the last word in if she could help it. Weakly, she told him, "That's just another mistake in a long list. I'm surprised Adam still gives you any kind of gun, considering the only way you ever hit your intended target is by waving it in someone's face. The only time you land a good shot is by dumb luck."

Despite the fact that she couldn't see him, Keir still frowned at the comment as he spoke. "That's pretty big talk from someone that's about to pass out. Besides, I can make as many mistakes as I want. Unlike you, I always got Adam results. What are you going to do Blake? Make me pay for my mistakes?" Blake struggled to answer, but by now the drugs had nearly taken full effect. As she let out an unintelligible sound, Keir just laughed as he brought the tranquilizer rifle above his head. "Oh well. It was a boring conversation anyway."

Without a second thought to the possible consequences, Keir drove the stock of the rifle into the side of Blake's head. The only thing Blake could do was let the darkness of sleep claim her as she thought about what Adam possibly had in mind.

* * *

 **AN: Short chapter to get us back on track. However, in all fairness, these Blake chapters are not intended to be overly long anyway.**

 **Truthfully, there isn't really much to cover here so I'll just get straight to it: as always be sure to drop a review and add the story to your favorites ^_~**


	16. Catch and Release

Chapter 12  
"Catch and Release"

* * *

Forever Fall (?), one day after FoB

* * *

As she began to recover, Blake became aware of two things. First was the sharp pain she felt along the side of her head. There was no doubt that it was the result of being knocked out. She briefly wondered why Keir felt the need to do such a thing before remembering he was nothing more than a brute. If it weren't for the White Fang, he would be hired muscle at best. Attempting to apply logic to his actions would be a waste of time. The second thing she became aware of was the numbness in her arms. Blake managed to move them slightly and realized her wrists were tied up to some sort of bar above her head. This left her in an uncomfortable state between standing and hanging. She eventually managed to get her feet under her and support herself, but it quickly became clear that she wasn't going anywhere until someone else untied her. As she did this a pair of voices came to her ears.

"We're lifting off now. ETA, five minutes. Are you sure we want to be flying in that direction boss?"

"You know better than to question me. Besides, the Grimm shouldn't be a problem. We're going in dark. Keep the Bulkhead low and keep the speed up. Above all else, don't get too close to the tower. Unless you're stupid enough to fly directly into a Griffon or Nevermore, we should be fine."

Blake was unsure of who the first voice belonged to. However, it was clear that this was the pilot. Blake could only assume the Bulkhead had been flown in while she was out. The second voice, she knew all too well. Opening her eyes, she saw Adam and Keir sitting across from her. Despite the situation, Blake did manage to send a verbal jab in Keir's direction. "Well, as long as the pilot isn't as stupid as Keir, I would assume everything would be fine. Then again, considering the direction you've taken this group, I wouldn't be too sure of that."

As bad as things were, Blake couldn't help smirking when Keir lunged out of his seat. The only thing stopping him was Adam. While he didn't say anything, Blake could clearly see Adam was more than a bit agitated with him. Meanwhile, Keir sat down and glared at Blake. "I don't know why you feel these games are needed. It'll be so much easier to just shoot her in the face and toss her out." It was something Blake herself had wondered. Adam had plenty of chances to kill her in the past two days. Yet, she knew that for all his seriousness, Adam's desire to make people suffer was the only thing keeping her alive. As much as Blake wanted to say what she was thinking to his face, she held herself back.

 _One day, that's going to be your undoing._

Meanwhile, Adam just remained calm. Blake wasn't sure what he had in mind for her, but she was starting to get a bad feeling about where they were heading. Deep down, she knew the answer was obvious. A five-minute arrival window, mentions of Grimm plus a tower didn't leave much room for speculation. Blake was content to just maintain her silence at this point, but Adam had other ideas. Leaning forward, he used Wilt and Blush almost like a cane. She rather grimly noted that he was like a dark reflection of Professor Ozpin as he did this.

"So tell me Blake, how long has it been since the train job? Eight months? Nine?"

She didn't answer Adam. As far as Blake was concerned, the two of them were way past words at this point. Seeing that he wasn't going to get an answer in this manner, he tried another approach. "What did you think was going to happen?" he asked. "Did you think you'd run from your past forever? Did you simply think you were going to hide, pose as a human, eventually become a huntress? Is this where you saw yourself nine months ago?"

Eventually, Blake gave in and answered him. She glared daggers at him and Keir as she spoke. "If you talked to me back then, I would have thought being your prisoner would be the last thing on the list of possible outcomes. Nine months ago, I still believed the world was not black and white. Despite my better judgement, I believed you were misguided. Up until the incident at the docks, I thought the White Fang as a group could be saved. Now? Now I know the truth. There is evil in this world. You are, without question, someone who need to be stopped at all costs. You've ruined the White Fang with your hatred. The only thing you'll succeed in, is keeping this cycle going. Every action you take is a retaliation. In turn, it only leads to retaliation against faunus. At some point, someone has to be smart enough to walk away." She couldn't contain her anger anymore as she continued. "You want to know why I left? I left because I decided that I had to be the one to say enough. The only thing your actions will ultimately accomplish, is getting more innocent people on both sides killed."

As she finished, Keir suppressed a chuckle. Adam remained silent for the time being. The silence was broken by the pilot telling them they had about a minute until they arrived at their destination. As he got up, Adam drew his sword. Blake wondered if he was actually going to listen to Keir as he pressed a button on the wall. She felt the rush of air as the door behind her opened. Adam took up a fighting stance as he spoke to her.

"My love, we could debate this until judgement day. Instead, to prove I'm not completely heartless, I'm going to give you one last chance to walk away with your life. Despite his protests, I instructed Keir to let you keep your weapon. If you survive this, then you're free to do whatever you want. But, make no mistakes. If you cross the White Fang again, your life will be mine to take."

Blake wasn't sure where Adam was going with this, but if that was all it took to be rid of him forever, then so be it. For a moment, she was going to actually agree to those terms. Then, something crossed her mind. "Wait, what about my friends?" she asked. The tone of voice, and his next words, mentally brought Blake back to the day she decided to leave the White Fang.

"What about them?"

Before she could protest or beg him to leave them alone, Adam had already cut both ropes holding her arms in place. Blake tried to draw her own weapon, but she was already at a disadvantage. With no warning, Adam delivered a kick to her chest and sent her flying out of the Bulkhead. Her mind instantly went towards breaking her fall, but before she could set a plan into motion, Blake had already hit the ground hard. She cried out in pain as she landed. What little aura she had protected her from the worst aspects of the rough landing, but it wasn't enough to keep her from cracking at least one rib. She hadn't yet gotten her bearings, but it was obvious that the Bulkhead was expertly piloted in such a manner that it was less than a 15 foot fall. Despite that, the speed they were traveling at did her no favors as she quickly became aware of something that would be the end of her.

Blake's momentum sent her rolling towards the edge of a rooftop at high-speed.

In such a situation, she didn't have many options. For most people, the first instinct would be to reach out and try to stop their roll. However, Blake was rolling too fast. If she attempted to do that, she'd likely break an arm or dislocate her shoulder. Instead, she simply let her momentum carry her off the roof since she had the perfect tool for the situation. Once she was clearly able to reach Gambol Shroud, Blake quickly pulled it out, transformed the weapon, then threw it into the side of the building. On pure instinct, she managed to hold onto the ribbon and swing herself towards a glass window.

 _This is going to hurt._

She managed to get her legs up as she crashed through the window. Once again, her aura managed to protect her somewhat, but this most recent abuse on her body proved to be too much as it fizzled out. Blake did her best to resist the urge to scream as she fell onto her right side. One shard of glass had imbedded itself in her thigh, while another managed to catch her on her right cheek. Despite the pain her ribs were causing her, she needed to take a few deep breaths on the floor and rest for a moment. Eventually, Blake used Gambol Shroud's ribbon to retrieve the weapon. As she did this, she heard the Bulkhead circle around. When it passed the building, she heard Keir shouting at her.

"YOU MIGHT WANT TO WORK ON YOUR LANDING STRATEGY!"

She groaned as she managed to pull herself to her feet. If she had any ammo at all, Blake would have likely taken potshots at Keir just to shut him up. Looking around, she quickly saw she was in a bedroom. At this point, she wasn't paying too much attention to her surroundings. Right now, Blake's main concern was treating her wounds as she managed to limp over to one of the beds. Sitting on it, she used her weapon to cut several pieces of cloth from a blanket. Once she had that taken care of, Blake braced herself and quickly pulled the shard of glass out of her thigh. Considering how much she already hurt all over from various bruises and cuts, it was actually surprisingly easy to ignore the pain. As she tied a makeshift bandage around her leg, Blake took in her surroundings. Now that she had more time to look around, Blake saw that it was a decently sized bedroom. Four beds, a couple of desks, various books. After a few seconds, she realized she had seen this type of setup before. It was a dorm room. During the flight, Blake already had her suspicions about where she was heading. Hobbling over to the window confirmed them, as she looked upon the shattered tower and numerous Grimm down below.

Adam had dumped her right back at Beacon.

Blake wasn't sure what made him pick this place. Was it a sick sense of humor? Was it the fact that the number of Grimm in the area likely rivaled Mountain Glenn now? Whatever his reasoning was, the one thing she was sure about was the fact that, one way or another, he expected her to die here.

Once the situation was clear to her, Blake was careful to not let her figure linger in the shattered window. She also made it a point to try to clear negative thoughts from her mind. That last part was easier said than done, but as a huntress, she had to do the best she could to not let her anger or fear get the best of her. If she did, she'd be signing her own death sentence.

As she got her bearings and looked for various landmarks, she suddenly realized that her luck had taken a slight turn. Blake wasn't in just any dorm building. She was actually in the building that her team occupied. Blake was going to need supplies. Getting dropped here would make them much easier to come by. All she had to do was get to her room. Once she had that part taken care of, she could then start forming a plan to get out of Beacon. Blake had a sinking feeling that she would need to get back to Vale as quickly as possible. On foot, and in her current state, that would likely be a two-day trip. Blake figured she could attempt to spend the day in the building. As long as she didn't do anything too drastic, she might be able to hide out in the dorm room and wait until nightfall. The sun would be up in a couple of hours, yet she didn't dare attempt to cross the campus in broad daylight with this many Grimm around.

With the beginning of a plan in her mind, Blake made her way to the door. Before opening it, she used a leftover piece of cloth to wipe the blood from her face. Even in the darkness, her eyesight allowed her to see a surprising amount of blood on it. She frowned as she realized that the cut on her cheek would likely become another scar.

 _Between what he did to Yang, my stab wound, my thigh, and my face, that's four I owe Adam._

As soon as that thought crossed her mind, Blake mentally cursed at herself knowing she was potentially drawing Grimm to her. If her grand entrance hadn't drawn attention to the building by now, then those types of thoughts would. She normally didn't harbor such feelings. However, after everything Adam had done, she couldn't let him run free anymore. If she was to be truly free of the White Fang, then Blake had to do everything she could to stop him.

Slowly and carefully, Blake opened the door and entered the hallway. The coast appeared clear at first. Yet, within seconds, several Creeps came around the corner at the end of the hallway. They hadn't seen Blake yet, so she elected to quietly try to make her way to the other end of the hallway. As she got to the end however, she came face to face with a Beowolf. Before it could react, Blake quickly drove her katana up into its neck. The Beowolf made a pitiful sounding yelp as the blade found its mark. Not wanting to allow it a chance to fight back, Blake forcefully tore her weapon out, then proceeded to decapitate the Grimm. Before the head of the Beowolf could even hit the ground, it had already started to dissipate. However, the commotion drew the attention of the Creeps on the far end of the hallway. With a sigh, Blake readied herself for battle.

Naturally, this wasn't going to be as easy as she thought.

* * *

 **AN: So there you go. The first scars of Blake's collection have begun to appear. One that was not previously mentioned, one that Yang assumed Blake had received in a battle. Following this, I'm doing a slight jump in time. If I cover every last moment of Blake's time alone, I'll most likely tack on another ten chapters before we get back to the present. Hell, aside from flashback cameos, we haven't even properly brought Weiss or Ruby into the story yet!**

 **As always, add the story to your favorites, review it, and feel free to drop me a line.**


	17. Escape

Chapter 13  
"Escape"

* * *

Beacon Academy, one day after FoB

* * *

Following her inital battle at Beacon, Blake realized there would be no way she would be able to hide out and attempt to recover. Thankfully, the floor that Team RWBY's room was on hadn't been overrun yet, but if the sounds coming from within the building were any indication it wouldn't be long. Blake wasted no time in grabbing what she could: a backpack, a few changes of clothing, some rope, a first aid kit, and three extra magazines for Gambol Shroud. One mag was loaded with normal ammo, the second with ammo enhanced by Fire Dust, with the last containing Ice Dust rounds.

Getting out of Beacon was going to be rough no matter what, but Blake had come up with a decent plan. Despite the constant protests of the rest of the team, Weiss usually kept plenty of extra Dust stored with her personal belongings. Blake figured she'd need a loud, bright distraction. Therefore, it was actually a very simple plan:

Tons of Fire Dust, the team's school uniforms to keep it burning, and one piece of luggage belonging to Weiss.

Once that was taken care of, Blake dumped the baggage out of the window of their dorm room. It landed among a small group of Beowolves. Before they could figure out where it had come from she had already fired a single shot into the bag. The small explosion quickly burned the group to nothing. Meanwhile, the extra clothing did exactly what she had intended. All the extra clothing got sent in several directions and burned violently. It was almost like several road flares had been lit and thrown around a small area.

The lights and sound started to draw the attention of Grimm in the area. Satisfied that the plan was going to work, Blake turned to leave. However, she stopped at one of the desks before walking out of the room. There was a set of keys on the desk with a keychain that bore a familiar emblem and a purple pendant. Blake knew this could very well be the last chance to take things before they were possibly lost to time. For a moment, she actually considered grabbing the keys before remembering that Yang had Bumblebee in a storage unit in Vale. At worst, she only had to have a new set of keys made. With her plans for a quick getaway shot down, Blake settled on grabbing the pendant. She would have loved to at least grab one item for everyone, but there wasn't much more room for anything that wasn't essential. While it didn't hold true for the rest of her team, Blake knew that many students, herself included, had lost everything they owned when Beacon fell. Ultimately, it was a small gesture, but she felt compelled to do it.

Somehow, Blake was going to get that pendant back to Yang.

With that out of the way, Blake made her was across the hall to Team JNPR's dorm room. It felt like an intrusion of sorts, but it wasn't like she could ask for permission to enter. She did the best she could to not look at any of their personal belongings, but she couldn't help but stop and stare at an open closet for a moment. Pyrrha's prom dress had hung inside it. All it did was serve as a reminder of everything that had been lost during the attack on Beacon. Part of Blake's mind couldn't help thinking about what kind of chance they truly had if Pyrrha died. She was easily the most skilled first year student. The fact that she was gone still didn't seem real. Yet, now was not the time to think about those sorts of things. Blake still had to get out of Beacon.

Getting to the window, Blake saw that her plan was working far better than expected. Almost all the Grimm that had been directly below were running to the other side of the building to investigate the explosion. The courtyard itself still had Creeps and some smaller Beowolves scattered throughout, but the numbers and the spacing between them at least made escaping possible. As long as she made good use of her clones when she needed to, and as long as she didn't linger, there was a fairly decent chance of pushing through and hitting the forest before she could get overwhelmed.

 _Or, if this goes badly, there will be enough Grimm to hopefully make it end quickly._

Blake pushed those thoughts aside and mentally prepared herself for what was about to happen. With no aura, the odds of getting through this without injury would be extremely small. However, each minute she waited was another minute that increased the likelihood of certain death. Opening the window, Blake jumped without a second thought. As she left the room, she drove Gambol Shroud into the outside wall and swung along the side of the building. She had managed to swing herself in an angle that allowed her to briefly run along the wall. Just before running out of ribbon, Blake had managed to jump off towards a tree. She ignored the pain as she grabbed a branch in an attempt to slow her own momentum. Under normal circumstances, her aura would have protected her. This time, she felt the full force of such a basic maneuver on the palms of her hands. Her right hand was scraped up slightly, but her left hand had been cut open. Blake quickly pulled herself up into the tree and stopped just long enough to inspect the damage. The wound wasn't bad, but the last thing she needed now was to put the scent of even more blood into the air for the Grimm.

As she yanked her weapon back towards her, Blake heard a sound just below her. She looked down and saw a Beowolf looking up at her. It actually seemed confused for a moment, almost as if it hadn't expected to see another living creature wandering the grounds of the fallen academy. That confusion was its downfall as Blake pounced on it with weapons drawn. Just as she drove the cleaver that doubled as her sheath into its head, she used her Semblance to create a clone and propel herself forward.

Rolling along the ground, Blake landed in a crouch. Looking forward, she saw three Creeps rushing towards her. Flipping her katana into a reverse grip, she wasted no time running to meet them. She was extremely tired and her right thigh practically screamed at her as she ran, but she couldn't afford to let that slow her down now. Thankfully, Creeps were among the most simple-minded of Grimm. That in itself gave Blake a pretty good idea of how they would react. As the first one closed in, it leapt up in an attempt to grab Blake up high and possibly rip her throat out. As she ran, Blake managed to duck low enough to make it completely miss her. Coming back to her full height, she spun around and caught the second Creep with her katana, then as she faced forward again, she brought the cleaver around and cut the third in half. Turning around, Blake once again faced the first Creep. It apparently landed rather ungracefully since it was still attempting to get back to its feet. Before it could do so and locate Blake again, she had already switched to her handgun and fired two rounds putting it down for good.

As she turned her attention back towards the Vytal Festival Fairgrounds and the Emerald Forest in the distance, Blake saw that she was starting to bleed through her leg bandage. She also saw bloodstains on the hospital shirt that she was still wearing. The moment she was safe, she'd have to properly treat her wounds. She had some experience with a suture kit from her days with the White Fang. There were a few occasions where she had treated injured members after missions, but she always assumed that if she herself had been wounded that someone else would tend to her. Blake hadn't even considered that she might have to one day patch herself up. It was something she really wasn't looking forward to.

Now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. Blake had covered some decent ground, but she still had to reach the fairgrounds. A small pack of Beowolves were in her way. Meanwhile, all the noise had begun to draw Grimm back into the general area. There wouldn't be much time for Blake to think about what she would do. The only thing she could do now was act and hopefully make the right choices.

The group of Beowolves at the fairgrounds were only just starting to react. That gave Blake just enough time to put the next part of her plan into motion. As she rushed towards them, she switched to the magazine containing the Fire Dust rounds. With her wounds, outrunning the pack of Grimm behind her would be extremely unlikely. Standing her ground to fight? That would eventually be suicide. Blake felt she only had one real option.

She was going to burn the whole place down and hopefully create a wall of flames that the Grimm wouldn't dare attempt to cross.

Was it an ideal plan? Far from it. Fire Dust was volatile and burned extremely hot. The flames would either save her or be the very thing to kill her. Blake was sure there was a better plan, but with no time and a lack of better ideas it was the one she was going with.

Just as the Beowolves began to advance on her, Blake quickly fired the last normal round that was still chambered in her pistol. She hit one of them in the leg causing it to fall over in a heap in an opening between two stalls. That one was going to need to stay alive for now. As two more advanced, she fired off the first few rounds of the special ammo at the stall on the right. It quickly burst into flames and made the rest of the Beowolves halt their advance. For a moment, one Beowolf looked ready to charge at her regardless of the danger Blake's weapon posed to it. One round fired at its feet made it think twice. Just as Blake was about to get into range of the first wounded Beowolf, she fired one round into its head and rushed past before the flames could spread. As she did this, Blake quickly struck the wooden support beams of the stall on her left with her cleaver. The damage caused the roof to come sliding off and into the flames that were beginning to grow from the disappearing corpse of the Beowolf she had just killed. Meanwhile, she threw Gambol Shroud into a support beam of the stall she had already set on fire. As it wrapped around, she used its attached ribbon to yank the weakened beam away and collapse the other stall. The wreckage of the two stalls was enough to give the fire plenty of fuel. Looking back, Blake saw a Creep and a Beowolf attempt to leap the flames, only to be caught by them and quickly killed. Seeing that happen was enough to keep the rest of the Grimm at bay. Several had attempted to circle around, yet they were also cut off as the flames quickly began to spread through the fairgrounds.

Blake was safe from the majority of the Grimm for now, but she was also aware of the flames that were making their way towards her as well. If she didn't end things fast, then she would be surrounded. She wasn't sure what would be worse: being burned alive or getting torn apart. As for the Beowolves that were already in the fairgrounds, Blake could almost sense what the creatures may have been thinking.

She wasn't the one who was trapped. They were.

Blake counted four among their numbers, all of whom were rather small for their species. Overall, the battle wasn't going to be hard. As the first among them closed in, it attempted to swing one of its claws at Blake's head. She managed to get under the attack and used one of her clones to confuse the beast. While it was distracted, she flanked the Beowolf as it attempted to attack her clone. Just as it began to fade away, Blake quickly drove her katana through a leg and into the ground, pinning the creature in place. Before it could even howl out in pain or figure out what had happened, the young faunus had already spun around on her left foot and decapitated it with her cleaver.

It was at this point that Blake's injuries began to catch up with her. As she faced the pack again and attempted to place weight back on her right leg, she stumbled slightly. Sensing that their prey was weak, two Beowolves advanced from opposite angles. Blake had Gambol Shroud back in her hand as she attempted to regain her proper footing, but it was quickly becoming clear that she wasn't going to get out of their way in time. Out of desperation, she fired the last of her First Dust rounds at one of the beasts in an attempt to give herself room. It quickly proved to be a terrible idea as the Beowolf had observed her enough to know to get out of the way. The result was setting a few more of the stalls on fire far quicker than Blake had intended. She was beginning to run out of escape routes, but that wouldn't matter if she couldn't fend of these attackers. Out of sheer desperation she jumped backwards and nearly into the encroaching flames behind her. As she did so, Blake left one of her clones in the hopes that it might confuse the Beowolves long enough for her to gain the upper hand.

While she was able to briefly come into contact with her own clones before they disappeared, anyone else who attempted to touch them would pass right through. The exception came when she used specially designed capsules of Dust within her firearm. Other students that had sparred with Blake generally described her clones as being like ghosts. Blake was expecting the typical results at the two Beowolves attacked the clone. Instead, she stood dumbfounded for a brief moment as the clone appeared to double over in pain from the first attack. She then went completely wide-eyed as the second Beowolf proceeded to actually decapitate her clone. This was the second time in the last few days that Blake had seen her clones doing brand new things. Was her Semblance actually beginning to get stronger and more complex in its abilities?

Experiments with her powers would need to wait. Blake quickly realized that she was going to lose her reaction window if she continued to stand there gawking. Seeing her chance, she rushed back into the fray. Just as her clone finally began to disappear, Blake brought both weapons forward and slashed at the stomach of one Beowolf, spilling its innards out. As it fell over and began to dissipate, she turned her attention to the next Beowolf. It had just recovered from the shock that its target wasn't dead and was beginning to lunge at Blake. The creature attempted to bite at her face, but Blake managed to bring her cleaver around. As its jaws snapped shut around the flat part of the weapon, Blake actually pushed forward and drove the edge of its blade deeper into its mouth. The pain forced the Beowolf the stumble backwards. Had it been in its normal state of mind, it likely would have torn Blake apart. Instead, it violently tried to shake its head loose with its mouth still closed, not realizing that these actions were only driving the weapon deeper and that all the Beowolf needed to do was open its mouth. Meanwhile, Blake had brought her katana around and was screaming very forcefully as she repeatedly drove it into the chest of the Beowolf. The creature finally went still and began to fade away.

With three down, there was a single Beowolf left in the fairgrounds. It knew Blake was injured, but at the same time it had observed enough of her fighting and techniques to learn that it couldn't take her lightly. It actually recoiled slightly and snarled as Blake turned her attention to it. Blake began to rush towards it and summoned a clone, but this time she summoned the clone behind her. She had a feeling that this Beowolf would expect the clone first. As the distance between them grew shorter, she was proven right. This particular Grimm was standing its ground and made no attempts to attack. It didn't even attempt to defend itself as she aimed her katana right for its heart. As soon as her weapon found her mark, it realized its mistake and attempted to react. Yet, by this point, it was too late. As the Beowolf attempted to lash out, Blake had left her katana in its chest and spun out of the way as she let her ribbon trail behind her. Using all the strength she had, she pulled on the ribbon and caused the Beowolf to fall forward, driving her weapon even deeper into its chest. It made one attempt to get back up before it stopped moving and merely became another memory of a defeated Grimm.

As she retrieved her weapon, Blake looked back at the carnage she had created as she approached the forest. Nearly ever last inch of the fairgrounds had been engulfed. If left unchecked, the fire would eventually burn out of control. Loading the Ice Dust rounds into her pistol, Blake fired off enough rounds to create several small, strategically placed walls of ice. They would melt quickly, but it would be enough to counteract the Fire Dust enough to keep it from creating a massive forest fire.

Blake's thoughts turned towards finding a somewhat safe place within the forest to set up camp and plan her next move. Dropping her pack for a moment, she sheathed her weapon and then attached it to the magnetic plate she normally wore on her back. Picking up her bag once more, she let out a sigh as she walked towards a now uncertain future.

* * *

 **AN: What's this? A new chapter of Broken Souls? Enigma is still alive?!**

 **Yep, I'm still here. Forgive the long wait. The last month and a half have been somewhat on the crazy side. I recently got promoted at work. Between the training, the schedule changes, and the start of summer, free time has been few and far between. I've been working on this chapter at a snails pace with things finally slowing down enough to get the last chunk out.**

 **So where do we stand?**

 **Well, for one, I'm trying to get the story back on track. Yet, with another holiday weekend around the corner, it's possible that there could be another delay. I can promise you this much however: THIS STORY IS NOT ABANDONED! If something happens, and I feel this needs to end, I'll give fair warning and find a good stopping place. However, the intent is to bring this to a conclusion I can be happy with. Without giving major things away, I do indeed have plans for the rest of Team RWBY, some characters that shall remain nameless for now (SPOILERS!), and a general endgame in mind. As things currently stand, I don't expect to have this finished by the time of Volume 4's beginning. I have no doubt that Volume 4 will contradict things, so the intent is for this to be an entertaining AU.**

 **As for the current story arc, I really need to learn my lesson on timeframes. I originally intended to wrap Blake's flashback up within two or three chapters. Then, I intended a timeskip after the last chapter. Problem was, that left a ton of blanks between point A and point B. At this point, I'm simply going to let it go on it's on. I still don't intend to cover every last event that happens to her before rejoining the present (yes, I know you guys want to get back to that), but I do intend to cover enough so that there hopefully aren't any lingering questions. It might be four chapters, it could be ten. It's somewhat funny in hindsight that in the last AN I said I could potentially tack on another ten chapters of just the flashback if I went wild. However, this part of the story seems to have taken a life of it's own. Whatever the case may be, I'm simply going to let it develop on it's own and stop saying it will be X amount of time since that keeps backfiring on me.**

 **Regarding the future: once we catch up to the present I'm hoping to get the first major present day arc moving at a decent clip. I've got the villain in mind, know what their plan/motivation is, and I know how I plan to end it. The key now is finishing the flashback arc, then getting us up to that point.**

 **At the very least, I will try to get something up every 1-2 weeks. If I foresee it being more than that, I'll try to give a heads up regarding an incoming hiatus.**

 **For now, enjoy the new chapter. There's more coming soon ^_~**


	18. The Calm Before the Storm

Chapter 14  
"The Calm Before the Storm"

* * *

Emerald Forest, three days after FoB

* * *

Blake felt extremely unsatisfied as she tossed the bones of the fish she had caught into her campfire. It was small and could barely be called a meal, yet it was also the first thing she had actually eaten in the last few days. If she actually devoted a fair amount of time towards it, she likely could have had more than one little carp. However, since the Fall of Beacon, the part of the forest she was in had seen an uptick in Grimm activity. While she hadn't run into anything too dangerous, Blake didn't want to linger around and take her chances. She was still recovering from her various injuries. Until they were fully healed, her aura would be dangerously weak. The last thing Blake needed was a prolonged battle.

Under normal circumstances, Blake would have actually welcomed the quiet that surrounded her. Yet, things were far from normal. Right now, she would have prefered Yang's terrible jokes, an awkward conversation with Ruby, or even a disagreement with Weiss. Instead, without the three of them nearby, the only thing Blake could really do was focus on things that had happened recently.

The first thing that came to mind was her last actual face to face conversation with Yang. Following the incident with Mercury, the Vytal Festival Tournament was briefly put on hold. Yang had spent that night and the entire next day detained by Atlas soldiers. It wasn't until the morning of the third day in custody that General Ironwood had ordered for her to be turned loose and placed under house arrest for the remainder of the tournament. Ruby and Weiss were quick to believe Yang's story, but even in such a brief moment, Blake saw parallels with Adam. Despite making Yang look her in the eyes and promise her that she didn't intent to harm Mercury, there was a part of Blake that didn't quite trust her. She told Yang to her face that she believed her, but deep down Blake had become worried about her partner. Blake should have supported her partner at that moment. Instead, she elected to go to a coffee shop with Weiss and try to work out what happened in her own mind. Could the events of that night taken a different turn had Blake decided to remain with Yang? The rational part of Blake's mind told her that she couldn't have predicted what would come only hours later. Yet, there was another part in the back of her mind that wanted to shift the blame completely on herself.

Blake knew that Yang would be waking up any day now. But, as much as she wished she was at her side, she couldn't help but feel that Yang would somehow blame her. After all, now that she was looking back on things in hindsight, Blake felt that deep down the two of them knew Blake's words regarding her trust in Yang were hollow. Had she remained with Yang, then she would not have sought her out. Blake would have never run into Adam, their disastrous battle would have never happened, and Yang would not have been looking for Blake. It was a chain reaction of events that she desperately wished she could change.

The worst part was that Adam just couldn't leave them alone after it was done. He had to come drive an even bigger wedge between them as well. She hoped Adam's threats towards her team was just a bluff, but Blake couldn't shake the feeling that if she took too long to get back to Vale, one of them would die. It wasn't just her friends either. As long as Adam was leading the White Fang, humans and faunus would never know peace. It was exactly like she told him during the flight to Beacon. Each action the Fang took was a retaliation of some sort. In turn, humans would retaliate in some form. There were actually places in Remnant where faunus couldn't even live among humans, not because of laws, but because the tensions were so high, one could not live there out of fear that a human with a closed mind would do something drastic. Blake felt like the line of actions and reactions could be traced all the way back to the Faunus Rights Revolution. She also felt one could go even further than that. What really started all this? Some perceived inferiority to the 'beastmen' of Remnant, which is what originally caused so many to live on Menagerie? Was it a group of faunus that felt they were the superior species, the ones who should really be ruling the world? Or did it simply come down to that age-old problem that plagued both races? The fact that some people, people who more often than not were pulling the strings, simply didn't like something that was different from them? Whatever started this, it lingered into the present. Blake knew what she had to do, but despite now knowing how dangerous Adam was, it still broke her heart. While the world had many problems, a key issue was the White Fang. If the group disbanded tomorrow, it would likely stop much of the tension in the world. Blake felt there was only one way to do that. If her friends were to remain safe, and if Remnant was to actually know peace between faunus and humans, then there was only one correct answer.

Blake was going to have to kill Adam.

* * *

 **AN: Bit of a short chapter this time. However, it's exactly what the title suggests. As far as the Blake flashbacks go, this is going to be her last peaceful moment before her own personal war starts.**

 **Regarding her state of mind, I can easily see her being all over the place at this point. Her mind would obviously be focused on Yang, and all things considered, it's very likely she would blame herself over what happened. Once the canon events regarding her reunion with Yang occur, I'll be more surprised if she doesn't blame herself. As for Adam, Blake knows without a doubt that he needs to be stopped for good. However, despite everything, I can see her still being rather conflicted over it. Due to their history, she'd still see him as a brother figure, but deep down she knows that as long as he's in power there cannot be peace between humans and faunus. Obviously, Blake knows it wouldn't solve all of the racial problems, but she would believe that getting rid of the White Fang would go an extremely long way towards fixing many of them.**

 **Anyway, keep an eye on your notifications for updates ^_~**


	19. Never Your Fault

Chapter 15  
"Never Your Fault"

* * *

Village of Patch, the Xiao Long home (Present day, 195 days after FoB)

* * *

"You know, there's a part of me that really wants to punch you right now."

Blake stopped her story for a moment. She had been caught off guard by the sudden comment from Yang. Something she had said while recounting the events of her capture and escape from Beacon had clearly upset her friend. Blake blinked her one good eye as she sat confused. What was it that had unexpectedly and suddenly caused the outburst from Yang? The confusion on her face must have been apparent as it prompted Yang to sigh before explaining herself. "Really?" she asked. "I've got to spell it out?" Blake still wasn't sure where Yang was going with this, but her next words made everything clear.

"'I couldn't help but feel that you would somehow blame me over what happened to you.'"

Blake closed her eye, clearly not wanting to think about that memory yet again. During their talk, Blake had said that. She felt, no, she knew that she was the key person to blame for the loss of Yang's arm. "It's only natural to blame me. Following your fight with Mercury, I didn't know what to think. I wasn't entirely ready to support you again. Had I been with you that night, it's possible we would have never met Adam." Blake couldn't stop her tears anymore as she looked away from Yang out of shame. "You'd still have your arm and I would never had to have gone through what I did. Plus, we'd be right were we belong, out there with Ruby."

Blake didn't know how Yang would react to what she felt was an admission of guilt. In her mind, any rational person would have clearly seen the logic behind her thoughts. After all, had she believed Yang from the start, much of the pain both had felt in the last six months could have been easily avoided. She really was to blame, wasn't she?

As for Yang, she was horrified. Did her best friend seriously hold in so much undeserved guilt this entire time? She supposed part of her somewhat understood those feelings. Ever since the revelation that Blake was forced to leave, Yang felt guilty over being angry at her. Yet, this was entirely different. Blake was assigning blame to herself for something she had absolutely no control over. Yang was even more upset now, but not for the reasons Blake believed.

Without warning, Yang had pulled Blake in and hugged her.

While she welcomed the gesture, part of Blake felt she didn't deserve it. Why would Yang do this? Was she forgiving her for her part in messing everything up? She didn't have to think about it for long.

"You are a fool if you think I ever blamed you for this. You're an even bigger fool for blaming yourself. This was never your fault Blake. If I had to do that situation over again, I would gladly sacrifice my arm a hundred times."

Blake didn't know what to say. She knew that Yang was very angry with her regarding her disappearance, but in light of the truth and her reasons why she left, that situation had been worked out fairly quickly. She felt her arm would be an entirely different matter, yet there was zero blame. Blake didn't know what to say, but she knew this was why she loved her so much. Once again, she wrestled with telling Yang her true feelings at that very moment, but the timing still didn't feel right. Instead, she opted for something simple.

"Thank you."

Yang blinked for a moment. She still had Blake pulled in close. As a result, she couldn't see the face of her friend. However, there was something off about the tone of Blake's voice. Yang could sense that Blake had more to say. Considering everything the two of them had been through, it didn't surprise her. She wasn't sure what it could be, but Yang felt that if Blake hadn't said it yet, then she must have had her reasons. Rather than pry into personal matters, Yang decided it would be best to let it sit for now as the two of them broke their embrace. When she was ready, Blake would tell her.

"You don't have to thank me for that." Yang was once again looking her friend in the face as she spoke. "Even when I was angry and depressed over your disappearance, I never once blamed you for my injury. However, let's set all of that aside for now. We've still got plenty to discuss and catch up on." Blake nodded as Yang asked her next question.

"What was the situation once you finally made it back to Vale?"

* * *

 **AN: Whoa! Two chapters in one day? What is this black magic? I call it splitting one chapter into two in an attempt to ease the scene transition. Shhhh! DON'T TELL THEM MY SECRETS! In all seriousness, I did feel that Yang would eventually jump into the middle of Blake's story, especially if she did something such as blame herself.**

 **Blake: As I previously said, Blake will undoubtedly blame herself for Yang's condition once they do meet again in canon. In my version of events, the fact that Yang has done no such thing would not only be a weight off Blake's shoulders, but it would reaffirm why she has such strong feelings for Yang.**

 **Yang: It's still anyone's guess how their reunion is going to go during Volume 4. I would like to hope that Yang doesn't blame her for the injury and is more upset about Blake leaving. However, by now Miles/Kerry have tortured us so many times during the final episodes of Volume 3, that I'm not entirely sure something screwy isn't going to happen. Ultimately, I think the actual events will depend on how long Yang is really out of action for and how the events of Blake leaving play out. If it comes down to something similar to what I have (forced to flee by Adam) then I can see Yang being far more forgiving. As for our story, no blame for the injury, and once it was clear that Blake had no choice the forgiveness came easily. As for the Blake/Yang relationship, by now Yang is starting to suspect Blake is hiding something, but she's not sure what. Perhaps I should just have them make out and get it over with XD (j/k)**

 **Also in case you didn't notice: with this chapter I've moved on to noting the actual number of days since the Fall of Beacon. Granted, I've used that measurement in flashbacks when it was shortly after the event. However, I've generally gone with something such as "six months" in other places. Moving forward, I'm going to stick to a measurement of days. I feel that'll help keep track of the movement of time much easier. Plus, if there are additional flashbacks later, it'll help pinpoint when those events are happening in relation to other events. I'll eventually go back and fix the older chapters to bring them in line with this system, but as it's not a major priority, it might be awhile before I've got that fully done. As for later on, as the story arcs move along I may stop using "X days after FoB" as a measurement. Once other major battles occur, it'll likely be easier to measure it in terms of "X days after _ event" as opposed to constantly sticking with the Fall of Beacon as the major measuring point. When these transitions occur, I'll be sure to note what the final count of days since the previous major event was. That way, you guys will always know exactly how long it's been since the start of everything.**

 **Next time in Broken Souls: Blake continues her story about her survival. What was waiting for her upon her return to Vale? How does everything play out? If you want to stay up to date on those developments, then I'm sure you know what to do: follow/favorite the story and keep an eye on your inbox ^_~**


	20. Dead Drop

Chapter 16  
"Dead Drop"

* * *

Vale Outskirts, five days after FoB

* * *

Blake stopped for a moment as she reached the top of the hill. The hard part of her journey back to Vale was nearly over. She still had the real work ahead of her, but she knew she couldn't just go rushing in. There was a part of her that wanted to rush to the hospital and confirm that Adam hadn't decided to follow-up on his threats. Yet, she knew that rushing in could get her or one of the others killed. Blake hadn't forgotten that Adam had a sniper posted near the hospital. While time was of the essence, Blake reminded herself that she had to do things carefully.

The first order of business was finding a suitable place to store her extra supplies. Blake was going to need to remain mobile. A pack filled with too many things wasn't going to do her any favors. She thought she knew the perfect spot. Just outside of the city, there were several abandoned farms in the Agricultural District. These farms sat in an area that the City of Vale had essentially considered a sort of no man's land. Originally, they were part of the Mountain Glenn expansion. Too far away to be easily defended by Vale, yet way too close to Mountain Glenn once that city had fallen.

It was the perfect place for White Fang members to set up a dead drop.

The location in question was originally set up by Blake. Back when she was still with the group, she and another member named Tukson had used an empty farmhouse to store gear and supplies that weren't currently needed. Of the two of them, Blake was the only one still alive. Unless he had shared the location with someone else, there was almost no chance of anyone else discovering anything that was hidden there.

As she approached the building, Blake quickly took in her surroundings. Nothing appeared to be out-of-place, and as far as she could tell, there seemed to be no recent foot traffic. That was a good sign. Had there been even the slightest clue to suggest someone was recently in the area, Blake wouldn't have even entered the building. Yet, once she walked in, she was caught by surprise.

In the living room was an old table and a single dining room chair. The chair was standing up.

That was the sign used to signal that a drop had been made. In this particular case, the items in question would be hidden under the floorboards near the fireplace. The last time Blake had used this location was the week before she entered Beacon. Her contact that also used this drop also had a desire to leave the White Fang, but chose to remain with them in the hopes of steering them away from more extreme measures. He had left all her forged paperwork and identification here. If there was a drop signaled, then that would mean he had done so in the slim hopes that Blake would eventually come across it.

Once she had gotten a loose floorboard lifted up, Blake started to take the items out one by one. First was 200 lien. It wasn't a major amount of money, but it would be enough to get supplies at some point if needed. Next was a piece of paper with a series of numbers written on it. Blake instantly recognized this as a cipher. White Fang members had typically sent coded messages to one another using a book called The Third Crusade as the key. Finding this message was a major development. Blake had a strong feeling that some of Adam's plans might very well be revealed once she was able to decode it. Turning her attention back to the hidden compartment, she did manage to find an old and dusty copy of The Third Crusade, as well as a pen. Wasting no time, she quickly got to work on breaking down the message.

The cipher itself was simple. The numbers worked in pairs. The first was a page number, while the second refered to a specific letter on the page. As an example, the number pair 34, 10 would be the tenth letter on page 34. A space between a series of numbers would signal the start of a new word. After that, it was simply a matter of unscrambling the message in an attempt to make sense of it. It took almost no time for Blake to get all the letters within the code. Despite this, the scrambled code seemed fairly odd:

QPMDIA CUA OB WHRS

Blake knew that whatever the coded phrase was, it consisted of four words. One with six letters, one with three, a two letter word, and finally a four letter word. Yet, the combination of letters seemed to yield no results. After about a minute of attempting to unscramble the code, a panicked thought crossed Blake's mind. There was only one possible explanation for such nonsense.

 _They've stopped using this book as a cipher key._

Blake didn't like this at all. The Third Crusade was a pro-faunus book written at the height of the Faunus Rights Revolution. The latter half of that war saw its first use as a cipher key. It was a closely guarded secret, one that still persisted to this day. During the war, humans had come across many copies of the book and simply wrote it off as simply something that was expected to be found among angry faunus. Due to the nature of instantly decoding the messages, then destroying all traces, it had never even occurred to anyone that the book was being used in such a manner. If there was one thing Adam was consistent about, it was holding onto various symbols in an attempt to rally the White Fang. Why would he suddenly stop using a proven tactic that the humans still hadn't caught onto?

She had to be missing something. Setting the book aside, Blake reached back under the floorboards. She was about to give up, but then her fingers caught the edge of something she had originally missed. Reaching as far as she could, Blake eventually managed to retrieve an envelope. Without wasting any time, she quickly tore it open and found a letter.

* * *

BB,  
If you're reading this letter, then there is a strong likelihood that I'm dead. Depending on when and where it happened, I fully expect it to be treated as either a suicide or a robbery gone wrong. I have no doubt that the actual cause is either going to be Adam, or people working with him.

You got out of the Fang at the right time. Adam is becoming more unstable. There are those of us opposed to this more violent turn. Adam knew this and played us. He actually shared plans to attack an orphanage and "liberate" any faunus children that may have been staying there. Naturally, much of the old guard had voiced their concerns that this was going too far. Adam relented on his plan. He then gave out a coded message that were suppose to contain the location of a new base of operations he had created. I've included that message with this letter, but if you've already attempted to decode it, then you no doubt see the problem.

One by one, Fang members that have voiced their concerns have started to disappear or die. I have fears that I might be next. I highly suggest simply staying away. Yet, if you really feel you must face him, then your first order of business will be finding out what the new cipher is. If you can manage to do that, and if the timing of everything is still somewhat recent, then perhaps you can find out where he is hiding.

I wish you the best, but please be careful. Since you left, something has him paranoid. I've heard the name Cinder a few times since the train job. Not sure if there is a connection, but if there is, perhaps it's best to run. If this person has Adam spooked, then you know it's not good.

-T

* * *

Blake was normally someone who didn't let her anger get the better of her. However, this time, she couldn't help herself. Out of pure rage and anger at herself, she had drawn Gambol Shroud and with an anguished cry, Blake was now demolishing what little furniture remained in the farmhouse. After several moments, she found herself taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself. Yet, those attempts didn't seem to be working. Blake had managed to keep herself composed enough to not completely break down, but she still fell to her knees and felt defeated as a single thought crossed her mind.

 _It's all my fault. I could have prevented everything that happened that night._

Blake had heard about Tukson's death in the news. Things had gone down exactly as he thought they would. According to the Vale PD, there was no cash in the register. To them, it was simply a matter of a shop owner getting killed during a robbery. The news had hurt her deeply. He was one of the few people within the White Fang that she actually thought of as a friend. Once she had decided to finally leave, Tukson was the one to help her forge the paperwork she would need to get into Beacon.

Blake and Tukson had two agreements about this drop location. Once she had left the White Fang, they both agreed that the drop was to only be used if there was an emergency. While there was no formal plan regarding a contact method, Blake knew that Tukson would find a way if he really needed to get her attention. The other agreement was simply a common practice: if either one of them died, it was to never be used again. There was a part of her that wanted to check the drop once Blake had heard about his death, but the fear over a compromised drop kept her from doing so. The only reason Blake was here now was out of desperation. Instead, she found herself lamenting the fact that she didn't listen to her gut feeling.

After a few moments, Blake finally managed to snap out of it. This was just another reminder of something that couldn't be changed. The best thing Blake could do was begin the work to fix everything. Staying in an old, run down house wasn't going to accomplish anything. Every moment wasted worrying about the past was time she could be using to help her friends. Adam was still out there. As bad as things already were, she didn't need another death she could have prevented weighing on her conscience.

Blake had spent more than enough time here. After doing a quick check of her supplies, she stowed the smaller items back under the floorboards. Her extra clothes and backpack were stored inside the fireplace. With that taken care of, the only things Blake now carried were her weapons, the small length of rope she had grabbed at Beacon, and Yang's pendant which she was now wearing. She ignored the lingering aches and pains as she left the farmhouse, a single purpose driving her as she began her approach towards the Grimm infested portions of Vale.

As long as she had a say in the matter, none of her friends would fall to Adam's plans.

* * *

 **AN: I always felt there was more to Tukson that we never got to see. Overall, his one purpose is to establish Mercury and Emerald as killers. While I know that there doesn't have to be a relation between every last character, I do feel that not tying him to Blake in some meaningful way was a massive missed opportunity. Consider my use of him as a means of fixing that.**

 **Hoping to get Chapter 17 out in short order. In the meantime, I suggest checking out RWBY: Grimm Eclipse. As far as getting your RWBY fix goes, it's a nice alternative to reading fanfiction from crappy, subpar writers such as myself :P**

 **In all seriousness, get ready. While things are going to start getting rotten for Blake, I do have some nice surprises waiting in terms of what's coming next ^_~**


	21. The Return, Part 1

Chapter 17  
"The Return (Part 1)"

* * *

City of Vale, five days after FoB

* * *

The sun had just started to set as Blake made her way into Vale itself. Her approach had taken her right towards the heart of the Residential District. Overall, things had gone smoothly for the most part, but Blake soon saw that her plans weren't going to be nearly as easy as she expected. Once she had reached the Vale River on the southern end of the city, Blake had discovered that the bridge she had planned on using had a section destroyed.

There was not a doubt in her mind that this was done intentionally. Upon reaching the hospital several days ago, Blake had overheard Port and Oobleck discussing the possibility of destroying the bridges. While she didn't know who originally came up with the idea, she at least knew it wasn't one of them. Both men had seemed extremely distressed over the fact that such a thing was even being considered. Blake completely understood the mindset that they had. It was the district that sat closest to Beacon. From a tactical standpoint, it would drastically slow the advance of Grimm into the other parts of the city. However, attempting to evacuate anyone by ground would become impossible. While there was still the option of using a Bullhead or Airbus, any plan involving one would be tricky. The Residential District had not been designed with major air traffic in mind. While it would be trivial to drop hunters or Atlas troops in, actually landing one of the vehicles would be another story. The streets in much of the district would be too narrow, and very few buildings were designed with a landing in mind. That left very few locations where a proper evacuation could be performed.

Blake steeled herself for what she would no doubt find. This was a major Grimm attack on a city. The best escape routes were closed off. Almost on cue, the wind had shifted just enough to send a terrible smell towards Blake. Even without that, she already knew what all this would mean.

Blake knew it would only be a matter of time before she found bodies.

For a moment, Blake considered changing her plans and heading towards the coast. While it would actually be quicker to get back to the hospital from the southern part of the Industrial District, it was a risk she didn't want to take. She had no doubt that she was listed as a missing huntress by now. Plus, with the involvement of the White Fang, she wouldn't be surprised if there was some sort of checkpoint set up. The last thing she needed to do while being pressed for time was answer a bunch of questions. Finally, there was the chance that Adam's goons would be watching. Blake didn't want to announce her arrival to the White Fang. Even if Adam was bluffing, Blake wanted to have the element of surprise on her side. After fighting her way out of Beacon and spending nearly four days in the wilderness, no one would expect anyone to willingly travel through a disaster area.

 _This is my best chance at remaining undetected._

Blake looked at the damage to the bridge. Even at a full sprint with the aid of a clone to leap off of, the gap would be far too wide to jump over. There were street lamps along the side of the bridge, but even with Gambol Shroud, the distance was just too much. Just then, she remembered that she brought the rope with her. It still wouldn't be enough, but if she swung from the rope, then used Gambol Shroud on the next lamp, it had potential to work.

 _If it doesn't, then I guess I'll at least get that bath I desperately need._

Thankfully, the lamp itself was small enough to get her arms and legs around. Climbing it took almost no effort, despite the protests her wounds were making. Once she was at the top, Blake had managed to pull herself into a sitting position. In less than a minute, she had the rope tied securely around the street lamp. Carefully standing up, she tested it before jumping backwards off the lamp. On the first attempt, Blake could tell she didn't have enough distance or momentum, so she let herself swing back and forth a couple of times. On the fourth swing she let go. In one swift motion, Blake had drawn Gambol Shroud and launched it towards the next lamp. Everything came together effortlessly and before she knew it, Blake was on her feet and on the other side of the bridge. The only problem was that this had left her rope on the opposite side of the bridge. As rough as the last few days had been, she briefly allowed herself to smile as she thought of what Yang might say in this situation.

"'Hey, that's water under the bridge. We'll come up with a plan when we get there!'"

The smile quickly faded once Blake reminded herself where Yang was. She was supposed to be there for her. Instead, here she was running around in a city district that now belonged to the dead and the Grimm. By now, Yang had to be awake. Blake couldn't stop asking herself questions that she didn't have answers for. What were her first thoughts? How did she react once she discovered how badly she had been injured? Most importantly, what was her reaction to discovering Blake wasn't there? While she never really outright said it, Blake could tell that Yang had issues with abandonment. The few times they had discussed her mother was proof of that. After the inital discovery that she was a faunus, Blake didn't want to run from her friends again. On that note, what was everyone's reaction for that matter? Blake had been on her own for a long time. Beacon was the first time in her life that she truly had friends she could trust and rely on. Blake didn't want to be seen as someone they couldn't trust. She didn't know when she'd find him, but she knew that Adam would have much to answer for when she finally did catch up to him.

Blake buried her thoughts and feelings at she turned a corner. The outer edges of the district didn't look too bad, but the deeper she got, the more it started to look like a war zone. There were a few burnt out buildings down the street. Eventually, Blake came across the body of a young woman. Her eyes and face were frozen in a terrified expression. Blake saw that her throat was ripped open, no doubt by either a Creep or a Beowolf. She hoped that the woman's death had been swift. Upon seeing the body, Blake knew she shouldn't take any chances and quickly had Gambol Shroud ready.

As she continued down the street, things only got worse. Blake knew as soon as she laid eyes upon the carnage before her that this would be an image that would haunt her for the rest of her life. The dead were everywhere. She wasn't sure how many there were, but Blake knew there were far too many for her to count. Eventually, she gave up at around twenty. Humans, faunus, civilians, Atlas soldiers, huntsmen. It didn't matter to the Grimm, everyone she came across was a target for them. Blake even saw the bodies of people who bore the uniforms of Haven and Shade. Despite the orders to evacuate, it appeared that some of the students of the other academies had elected to stay and fight. Blake hoped that they had managed to at least get someone out of this mess, but as she walked along she slowly came to terms with the fact that this part of the city would be a total loss. Deep down, she knew that those that didn't get out of the district within the first hours of the attack were most likely trapped here until the bitter end. It was taking everything Blake had to not get sick over the sight of it all.

As she stepped over another fallen fighter, a sound to Blake's right drew her attention. Instinct took over as she quickly found herself in a fighting stance. She didn't see any Grimm, but Blake remained on guard as she searched for the source of the sound. After a few tense moments, she actually saw movement among the dead. For a second, she thought that her eyes were playing tricks on her, but Blake eventually saw something move from underneath another body. She watched for a moment in shock. Had someone actually survived this chaos? As she made her way over to investigate, Blake stopped and felt her heart sink.

Among the dead were a pair of faunus children. Next to them was the body of Reese Chloris.

Blake had battled her in the Vytal Festival Tournament. While she didn't know Reese personally, she was at least able to see that she was a fairly skilled fighter. As far as Blake could tell, she died in a vain attempt to protect the children. Several small wounds covered her body, but the apparent death-blow was a large gash across her stomach that had left the young woman disemboweled. The bodies of the children were even worse off. The sight of Reese's wounds along with that of the children were too much for Blake. Turning away, she finally threw up.

The sound this apparently got the attention of whoever was still alive. Within seconds, a weak, pitiful cry for help drew Blake's attention back to the task at hand. As she made her way over, Blake did her best to not look at the children again. After several moments, she managed to get the dead weight off of the person who was trapped. The person was a boy with a green mohawk laying face down. Blake quickly realized who this was. "Russel? Is that you?" she asked. Under normal circumstances, she'd have walked the other way. Of course, laying injured in the middle of the street among so many dead bodies was far from normal. While she had an extreme dislike for his team and their anti-faunus views, Blake wasn't going to just leave him there. As she flipped him over, Blake took a step back in horror. Russel had been slashed across the face by a Beowolf and was completely blinded. Another slash went across his chest. While the wounds weren't as deep as Reese's, it was obvious that they were fatal. "B-Blake?" he asked in an extremely uncharacteristic voice. Blake could tell from the tone that she was the last person he had expected to find him. Before she could confirm that it was her, another question came from him.

"T-the...the children. Please tell me...did Reese protect the children?"

Blake was shocked at the question. Russel Thrush was not someone she expected to protect a faunus. Despite not wanting to look back at them, Blake couldn't help herself. Now she was barely able to hold back the tears. She didn't care that this was Russel she was dealing with. As much as she disliked the boy, Blake couldn't let his dying thoughts be about the total failure of what was apparently a rescue team. Sighing, she said, "The kids are fine. Reese..." Blake stopped, unsure of how far she could take this lie before it didn't sound truthful. Pulling herself together, she continued. "Reese didn't make it. She bled out before we could get her the help she needed. But, she managed to get them to safety. You did good Russ." Despite his wounds, Blake could see that he relaxed a bit at the news.

"That...that's good. I thought we were...done for...once Cardin and the others ran. He said...that the animals...weren't worth saving."

While she shouldn't have been surprised, Blake still felt anger at the revelation that the rest of Team CRDL had once again ran away once things got dire. Cowards like that had no business being at Beacon. This time, it might have actually cost some folks their lives. Blake knew she was going to have some choice words for them if she ever came across them again. However, as she kneeled next to Russel, Blake had to know why he chose to stay. "What exactly happened?" she asked. "And why the sudden change of heart? Last time I saw you at Beacon, you were harassing Velvet until the moment Yatsuhashi showed up to beat your ass." Russel gave a pained chuckle as he spoke.

"R-r-really? You're...giving me the 'holier than thou' attitude...right now? Look around. Faunus or not...do you really...think I was going to leave kids here? It was a rescue mission. Get in...get out. But...there were too many people. Even...more Grimm. Airbus managed to drop a...ramp on a building. Got some out. But...the rest? It wasn't happening. Think I've been lying here for...at least a few hours."

Blake was about to say something, but she was interrupted by Russel's hand reaching out. It was obvious that he was looking for Blake's hand to hold, but without his eyesight, he hadn't realized she was kneeling next to him. His hand had shot high up and found Blake's bow. She froze for a moment. Despite the damage to his face, Blake could clearly see the confusion and shock as Russel continued to poke at it. With a sigh, Blake reached up and undid the bow. She had no doubt that if this had been even a week or two ago, Russel would be yanking at her ears with all his might and calling her a freak. "They're cat ears. I'm a faunus" was the simple response Blake gave him. She wasn't sure how Russel would react. Part of her expected to see the Russel she really knew emerge, but instead he just started to weakly laugh. "It's...a shame, isn't it?" he finally managed to ask. As he rested his hand on his chest, Russel spoke his final words.

"W-why...did it take something...so horrible...for me to see...we're not so different?"

Blake stared at him for a few moments. Aside from the wind, the area around her was now silent. Blake knew he didn't deserve to be left there. None of the people who littered the street did. But, there was nothing she could do for any of them. Never in her life had she felt so helpless. Standing up, she tied her bow around her ears once more. Blake knew what she was about to say would fall on deaf ears, but she did it anyway.

"I'm sorry I lied to you Russ. But, one thing I did say was true. You did good. Perhaps in another time, another place, maybe we would have been friends."

After that, Blake turned her attention back to the north. While she hadn't seen or heard any Grimm, she knew she had lingered for too long now. Blake had to keep moving forward. As terrible as this whole situation was, Blake's encounter with Russel had given her a new resolve. She was going to make sure that the White Fang answered for their part in the events that led to this, because deep down, she knew Adam was completely wrong. During their battle at Beacon, he scolded her like a child. Blake had just spoken to someone who hated faunus. He was able to see past his racism long enough to try and help those in need, and as a result, he paid with his life.

Blake's dream for equality wasn't impossible.

* * *

 **AN: Hey look! Another multi-part chapter! But this first part? That was a depressing bit to write.**

 **Overall, Blake's return to Vale has quite a bit of ground to cover. As much as this sucked to write, I felt I had to show how badly things had gotten. This was the first chapter where I felt we needed more of a punch. You can only throw so many nameless characters at situations like this. Reese and Russel might not be major characters, but they were at least well enough known to give that sense of "Holy crap! Things just got real!" without a need to kill someone people really liked. I can only imagine the hate I'd have in my inbox if I had tossed Velvet into this instead. That being said, sorry if you're a fan of either Reese or Russ (does Russel even have fans? XD)**

 **I'd love to say more about the chapter, but as this is only the first part of a multi-part chapter, I'll need to hold off a bit. More to come later!**


	22. The Return, Part 2

Chapter 17  
"The Return (Part 2)"

* * *

City of Vale, five days after FoB

* * *

As she continued to make her way through the Residential District, Blake did the best she could to mentally shut herself off from everything she had seen. While the worst of it was mostly behind her, she was still finding scenes of carnage that she really wished she hadn't come across. Blake had heard the stories about the night that Jade Village was attacked. Recently, the missions in Mountain Glenn had shown her what the aftermath of a major attack looked like years later. Yet, actually seeing an attack in progress was completely different. After the last few days, she actually had to admit that she had taken the Grimm for granted. Small groups of weaker Grimm usually weren't a concern to Blake. However, despite keeping her cool, being isolated and injured at Beacon was her first experience with the real danger they presented. Traveling through the Residential District provided her with the lesson regarding just how bad things could get if the Grimm outnumbered the people in an area.

So far, Blake had been lucky enough to not see any Grimm, but each second that went by was making her feel very tense. Somewhere off to the east, Blake heard several gunshots followed by a Dust explosion. Eventually, the silence returned once more, but it wasn't reassuring. The only thing it told Blake was that a battle had concluded. However, she couldn't even begin to make a guess as to what the outcome was. There was a part of her that wanted to investigate, but either way it was a bad idea. If the battle had been won by Grimm, then there was the chance that Blake would be tossing herself into a situation she couldn't afford to be in. If it was huntsmen or the military, they wouldn't be attacking her, but she'd possibly lose her chance to get the jump on the White Fang, or even worse, tip them off to the fact that she was back in Vale. If the threats Adam had made carried any weight, then she had to stay hidden.

Blake was completely isolated and alone.

The irony of the situation wasn't lost on her. Upon arriving at Beacon, Blake's original intent was to stay under the radar as much as possible. Yet, all it took to ruin that plan was thirty seconds and a chance encounter with Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. From there, it was almost as if events were working against her plans and wishes. She had no intention of getting close to anyone. It was one thing to be assigned a partner and a team, but actually becoming friends with anyone was something she felt she couldn't afford to do. Blake always worried about what could happen if Adam managed to track her down. She knew he'd be furious over the fact that she had left the White Fang. The last thing she wanted was to put anyone innocent in his path. However, instead of keeping her distance, Blake had gotten close to all of them. She had bonded with Ruby over books. She created a strong friendship with Yang while secretly wishing it would become something more. Most surprisingly of all, she even considered Weiss a friend. Months ago, both of them would have most likely scoffed at the possibility of being friends with one another. The heiress to the Schnee fortune, and the White Fang member turned huntress. Not even Ruby or Yang expected the two of them to get along so well once Blake's secret of being a faunus was known among her team. The two of them still had the occasional disagreement regarding various subjects, but now they were far more likely to discuss things in a civil manner at a coffee shop rather than constantly be at each others throats.

All of that was taken away from her in the span of a single day.

She felt that loss with each uneasy step through the ruins. Right now, her biggest wish was to have them at her side once again. Once that was accomplished, and once Yang had recovered, the four of them could then begin to figure out how they were going to handle the White Fang. Blake knew that Adam would want to capitalize on the chaos created by the attack on Beacon. She felt that the best way to protect the people of Vale was by ensuring that the White Fang were kept in check. Suddenly, a metallic sound from just behind Blake had her snap around in a defensive stance. As her eyes drifted down panic began to grip her.

A small grenade had landed right behind her.

With no time to react, the only thing Blake could do was brace herself for the end. Yet, the explosion she expected never came. Instead, the grenade started to spew out smoke. Before she could figure out what was happening, Blake heard two more smoke grenades land in the direction she had been heading. Within seconds, the entire street was coated in a cloud of smoke. Her vision impaired, Blake constantly kept looking around as there was only one explanation for what was happening.

Adam's assassin had found her.

* * *

 **AN: Second part was a bit on the short side. Mainly wanted to get a short bit up and save the actual fight for part three.**

 **Once again, as this is a multi-part chapter, the full notes and breakdown will come later.**


	23. Fighting Blind

Chapter 18  
"Fighting Blind"

* * *

City of Vale, five days after FoB

* * *

Blake wasn't sure what to expect, but she knew the situation wasn't good. With smoke covering just about every inch of the street, she was lucky that she could see even a couple of feet in front of her. However, her main concern was the lack of fresh air that the smoke was creating. While she couldn't see very far ahead, Blake would at least be able to handle herself if her attacker had gotten into melee range, but she would need to end any kind of battle fast. Blake knew that whoever this fighter was, they wouldn't have used smoke if they didn't have some way to deal with it. A prolonged battle under these conditions would only get her killed. She was doing the best she could to not breathe in any of the smoke. Blake was holding her breath for now, but as the seconds ticked by she knew she was eventually going to need to get out of the area.

Almost on cue, a sound behind Blake had her facing back where she had come from. With both her weapons in front of her, she was prepared to guard against any incoming attack. When nothing happened, she started to get the sinking feeling that she had been duped. Just then, there was another sound behind her. It was far too close for it to be more than a foot away. Blake knew that whoever it was, they would have been close enough to touch her. Taking no chances, she spun back around and swung at the noise with both blades.

Blake's attack found empty air.

Suddenly, before she could figure out what was happening, Gambol Shroud's sheath had been knocked away from her left hand. It traveled far enough into the cloud for Blake to know that it would be lost to her for the remainder of this battle. Blake still hadn't seen her attacker, but if they were disarming her, she knew that her katana was next. Before the blow could come, she had already transformed her katana into its pistol form. At that moment, a hand seemingly came from within the cloud and attempted to swat her weapon away. Anticipating the move, Blake had already softened her grip and watched her gun sail into the distance. She hoped that they didn't know about the ribbon that was attached, otherwise her whole plan could backfire. Just as her assailant seemed to materialize in front of her, Blake brought her left hand down on her wrist, grabbed the ribbon attached to her weapon, then with all the force she could muster, she swung it towards her attacker.

Whoever this person was, they obviously hadn't expected Blake to do this. Even so, they managed to fade away into the smoke just before Blake's weapon would have hit them. Before the weapon could make contact with a building, Blake yanked it back towards her and had it back in its katana form. Between the darkness and the smoke, Blake only caught a brief shadow, but the movements and disappearing act were enough for Blake to take a guess at what their Semblance was. As soon as it dawned on her, she knew that if she didn't get off the street, she'd be dead.

Not wasting any time, Blake took off down the street. As much as she didn't want to leave part of her weapon behind, staying alive was far more important. The need for air was becoming important as well. It had been about two minutes since the smoke grenades had bathed the area in a putrid cloud. Eventually, Blake was going to be forced to take a breath. Her lungs felt ready to explode. All she had to do was get out of this area.

However, Blake's assailant had other ideas. She wasn't sure how far she traveled before a fist suddenly appeared and punched her in the gut. With that one attack, Blake was now forced to take a deep breath. Almost immediately, her lungs felt like they were burning as she went into a coughing fit. Blake knew she was going to need to defend herself, but before she could react, her legs had already been swept out from under her. As she fell, she lost her grip on her katana. Acting on instinct, Blake attempted to pull it back to her, but could only watch helplessly as her attacker cut the ribbon away with a dagger before once again fading back into the smoke. Upon hitting the ground, Blake instantly exhaled and took several breaths of the somewhat cleaner air. While her lungs still felt like they were on fire, she at least felt like she wouldn't die from the lack of air now. Her katana had landed inches away. She attempted to reach it, but Blake's attacker had returned with no warning. One moment, no one was there. In the next, the person was practically on top of Blake. Yet, that was the least of her concerns.

Blake nearly froze in horror as she watched a dagger plunging down towards her face.

* * *

 **AN: I'm back! Miss me?**

 **The last several weeks have been rather stressful. Work has been rough as of late. Between late nights, finding time for friends and family, and two major game releases which include a FPS/RPG hybrid and an expansion to a major MMO, I've had a little less free time for writing (no prizes for guessing the games :P)**

 **Getting us back on track with a short chapter. This is essentially the third part of The Return, yet I opted for the name change due to moving into a battle. The real meat of the battle will be in the next chapter. As I'm sure some of you have gathered, this is the introduction to an OC. More details to come later, but I will say this much: their Semblance is related to the smoke.**


	24. Claret

Chapter 19  
"Claret"

* * *

City of Vale, five days after FoB

* * *

Before the dagger could be lodged into her head, Blake had managed to get her hands up in time. Her left hand grasped her attacker's weapon hand while she used her right hand for additional support. Her instincts and reflexes managed to save her life for now, but the dagger was still dangerously close to her left eye. Blake was going to need to think fast if she was going to get out of this situation alive.

In a split second, she took note of her attacker. For the first time, Blake had realized that the assassin was a woman. She was dressed head to toe in a White Fang uniform. The woman also wore what appeared to be a lieutenant's mask. Aside from her lower face, there were no visible features Blake could see. By now, Blake knew her Semblance was related to appearing and disappearing into the smoke, but she couldn't recall a single member with such a power. As a result, she had absolutely no idea who she was fighting.

While the smoke in the area was starting to dissipate, it was still impossible for Blake to take a deep breath without feeling like she was choking. That, combined with her general fatigue and the injuries she already had were slowly leading towards Blake's end as the blade drew ever closer to her eye. Her attacker on the other hand seemed to be unaffected. In fact, she seemed pleased as the battle was clearly in her favor.

"What's wrong Blake? Adam said you were someone who enjoyed being straddled by another woman. Why are you resisting me so much?"

As she spoke, Blake saw that the woman had fangs. While there was no doubt that the person was a faunus, this did nothing to give Blake any idea of what kind of faunus she was. She could have been anything from a snake to a wolf. However, that wasn't her main concern. Blake focused on the words the woman had said and felt disgusted over the taunt for several reasons. The most obvious was the fact that Adam had no respect for her secret, but the second reason chilled her and confirmed one of her primary fears.

 _They're going to try to get to me through Yang._

The momentary lapse in focus saw the dagger dip down a bit more and drew Blake's attention back to the situation at hand. The woman actually seemed disappointed at the fact that Blake was still attempting to fight back. "Come now, dear. No one will blame you if you choose to fade away into the night. If I actually loved my parents, then perhaps I'd have ended my life after they died. The sensible thing to do would be to let go of your pain and let everything come to an end." Blake didn't lose her focus at the second attempt at a taunt, but she did frown at it. As much as she hated to admit it, Adam knew her better than her own friends. How much did he tell this woman? Yet, Blake was thinking about another thing that was said.

 _'If I actually loved my parents?'_

Blake knew she was dealing with someone very twisted if they had that much hatred for their own parents. Such a mind could be extremely unpredictable in battle. While she would have prefered a straight up one on one fight, Blake was now slightly concerned over the idea. However, she still needed to get out of her current predicament before she could even consider such a thing.

As the tip of the dagger came closer again, Blake knew she was quickly running out of time. Any attempt to direct the blade away from her would only end with her getting stabbed. Frantically looking to her right, she saw that Gambol Shroud was nearby, but it was just out of her reach. Even if she could grab it, any attempt to do so would surely end with her death. The moment that Blake's right hand stopped supporting her left, it would be all over.

 _Come on! THINK! What would the others do in such a situation? How would Ruby get out of this? What about Weiss? Yang?_

* * *

Village of Patch, the Xiao Long home (Present Day, 195 days after FoB)

* * *

As she was telling her story, while making sure to leave out any allusions to her feelings for Yang, the boisterous blonde had apparently decided this was the perfect time to jump in and stop Blake for a moment.

"Well, I know exactly what I would have done. If I knew I was going to get stabbed..."

Yang stopped short of finishing what she was about to say once she saw Blake instinctively reach for her left shoulder, as if she was reliving the memory of what had happened to her. She had only intended to say it as a joke, but all Yang could do was look at her friend in horror at the realization of what she had to do to survive.

"Oh my God, you actually did it."

* * *

Back in the past

* * *

At that moment, a highly reckless idea crossed Blake's mind. She wasn't sure how Ruby or Weiss would get out of this. In fact, Blake wasn't entirely sure that Yang herself would do what she was about to do. Yet, without any other options, it was the plan she was going to go with. All she could do now was brace herself for what was coming.

Blake reached for her weapon. At the same time, she stopped resisting and guided the dagger towards her upper chest.

She wasn't looking forward to the idea of getting stabbed again. In fact, one miscalculation could prove fatal. Of course, when faced with the options of a survivable attack versus a fatal attack, it was an obvious answer. Blake screamed as the dagger found its mark just below her left collarbone. Her attacker clearly hadn't been expecting something like this and hesitated for a moment before pulling her weapon from Blake's fresh wound. She was getting ready to plunge the dagger into Blake once more when she froze.

Blake had managed to retrieve Gambol Shroud. With the weapon transformed into its pistol form she had it pressed into her opponent's abdomen.

Not even thinking twice, Blake pulled the trigger as fast as she could. A split second after the first shot rang out, Blake's attacker had faded back into the smoke. Blake had fired four rounds before her mind registered that her attacker had vanished. For a moment, she wasn't even sure that she had hit her, but then Blake realized the lower portion of her own clothes were soaked with blood. By now, the smoke in the area had faded enough to get a clear view. A trail of fresh blood led down an alley away from Blake. The discovery had shocked her. Was her opponent's aura really that weak?

 _It must be why she favors taking her victims by surprise._

There was no time to ponder the fact. While her opponent was injured, Blake hadn't managed to get away unscathed. If she had been wounded as badly as Blake assumed, then she didn't expect the assassin to return. However, that didn't rule out Grimm in the area or other White Fang members. Looking at it, Blake didn't think her newest wound would be life threatening as long as she treated it soon. Considering the circumstances, she knew she was done for the night. As much as she wanted to keep moving towards the hospital, Blake knew she was going to have to find somewhere to patch herself up.

As she walked away from the area, Blake saw where the other half of her weapon landed. Picking it up, she secured it to her back and didn't look back as she began the search for what she prayed would be a safe shelter for the night.

* * *

 **AN: Figured I'd try something new and cut in for a brief moment with Yang's reaction to the story as it's being told. Also for the observant among you, I've updated the plot summary to reflect what's happened so far. I also figured with Volume 4 on the horizon that I may as well mark it as an AU version of V4 from here on out.**

 **Anyway, I know some folks were expecting a full blown fight. There's a ton of moving pieces in the next part. As a result, I once again opted to split things up a bit. Patience will be rewarded, but I'm not entirely sure you guys are going to like the result :P**

 **Finally, for the curious: claret can refer to a Bordeaux wine. It's also British slang for blood. The title of this chapter has it's fair share of meanings regarding what it's referring to ^_~**


	25. Burned

Chapter 20  
"Burned"

* * *

City of Vale, six days after FoB

* * *

As the clock struck midnight, another day had begun in the City of Vale. For some, they hoped the carnage of the last few days was coming to a close. For others, there was still uncertainty. Would the Grimm breach the other parts of the city? Where were their missing family members and friends? Would they be the next to die?

In the case of Blake Belladonna, every single one of those thoughts had managed to cross her mind.

It quickly became clear to Blake that the Residential District was far from the most ideal place to set up camp for the night. Following her encounter with the White Fang assassin, she had run into several Creeps in her search for shelter. Their numbers were small enough for Blake to handle, but it was quickly becoming clear that the Grimm in the area were slowly becoming drawn to her. Despite her best efforts, Blake could no longer stop the flood of negative thoughts that kept assaulting her mind. That, along with the scent of her blood in the air had started to turn Blake into a magnet for the Grimm. Her thoughts only grew darker as she came across multiple places that were far from suitable. Homes with broken doors, storefronts with windows busted out, apartment buildings that appeared ready to collapse at a slight nudge. For one reason or another, there wasn't a single safe spot for Blake to rest

Just when she was nearly ready to give up, Blake turned a street corner. The shops that lined the street slowly thinned out and eventually gave way to what appeared to be a storage facility. This particular one wasn't very large. Two rows of storage bays lined each end of the street, with a larger central building in the middle. The main building appeared to be a converted warehouse. As she approached, Blake noted that some of the storage bays had been busted open and looted, yet the main building seemed to be untouched. The front of the building contained a very large garage door that was wide enough for multiple trucks to drive in and out of at the same time. It was most likely a remnant of it's time as a warehouse. On either side of the garage door were smaller doors for foot traffic. Overall, Blake wasn't entirely sure if it would be the most ideal location. However, with an extreme lack of options, she figured it would be her best chance to survive the night.

* * *

About 30 minutes later

* * *

After busting out the lock on one of the doors, Blake proceeded to barricade herself in with whatever she could find. None of the common types of Grimm would be able to break in. It would take something much larger than those to force their way in. Of course, Blake's luck would have to be absolutely horrendous for something like that to occur. Ursa lived fairly deep in the forests around Vale. Even despite everything that had occurred, she highly doubted any would have made their way into the city in the timeframe since the attack on Beacon. The only other somewhat common types she could think of that had that kind of power were Borbatusks and Beringels. She hadn't seen any Borbatusks during her trek through the city, and the last confirmed Beringel sighting in the area of Vale was well over 50 years ago.

All the other points of entry were covered. The massively oversized garage door showed no signs of wear, and the other entry door would be solid enough on it's own. The only other major point of entry was a very glass large glass skylight in the roof of the warehouse. Knowing that all the major flying types of Grimm were sticking around Beacon Tower put Blake's mind more at ease. This allowed her to search for medical supplies, but there was an issue.

Medical supplies and first aid kits weren't items that people typically put in long term storage.

To say that Blake's search hadn't gone well would have been an understatement. Granted, she didn't expect to find traditional supplies. However, the search for even makeshift supplies wasn't going that well. Blake did manage to find some clothing that could be used as bandages, but she couldn't say the same for thread and a sewing needle. While the blood flow had slowed considerably, her wound was still bleeding enough to warrant attention.

At the moment, Blake was on an upper catwalk that circled the perimeter of the building. The lower level mainly had larger storage units. She had found mostly large furniture, occasionally clothing, and every so often a motorcycle. The upper level had smaller units, so Blake figured her chances for smaller odds and ends that could be substituted for supplies would be better up top. By the sixth upper level unit however, Blake was starting to get desperate.

 _What have I opened so far? Twenty units?_

This time, she found a unit packed with various tools. Hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, and wrenches. If she had wanted to open a hardware store, then this would be the perfect unit to rob from. Getting disgusted, Blake was about to toss a smaller set of pliers across the room when she suddenly saw a small rectangular object sitting on top of a toolbox. Picking it up, she quickly realized it was a lighter.

Almost instantly, a plan came to mind.

Blake pulled out Gambol Shroud and released the magazine. This was the one that contained her conventional rounds. The mag itself held 17 rounds at capacity. Right now, she had nine rounds left. Blake still had some Ice Dust rounds as well, but those weren't going to work for what she had in mind.

While desperate times tended to call for desperate measures, she still couldn't believe she was even considering what she was about to do.

* * *

10 minutes later

* * *

Everything was set and ready to go. The only thing Blake had to do now was actually work up the nerve to do it.

Using the pliers she found, Blake had carefully taken the conventional rounds apart and dumped the gunpowder out onto a piece of paper. She wasn't sure how much would be enough, but by the time she had the sixth one opened up she felt that more would be overkill. Taking off her shirt, she took one look at it and saw just how much of a total loss it was. There was so much blood on it that Blake could no longer tell how much was hers, how much belonged to her attacker, and how much may have come from the various victims that littered the blood drenched streets of the city. Prior to proceeding, she took off Yang's pendant. It had hung on by a thread, but by some stroke of luck it hadn't been lost. Oddly enough, it managed to stay close to pristine despite the blood, the dirt, and the grime. For now, the best place for it would be a pocket on her pants

Looking down as she put the pendant away, Blake had realized for the first time that her pants were almost stained just as much. It occurred to Blake that if there was this much blood, then surely her attacker was dead from her wounds. She felt numb as that thought crossed her mind. Did she really just take a life in battle? As much as the idea troubled her, Blake had to put it out of her mind. She still had a wound that needed to be attended to, and she still needed to focus on how and when she would get to the hospital.

In an ideal situation, Blake would have simply sewn her wound shut. However, she had left her first aid kit behind and hadn't expected to receive a severe wound such a short time later. Sutures of some type would be the best option, but Blake couldn't even find anything that would be a suitable replacement. Even if she had found some fishing line or thick thread, she hadn't been able to find a needle. That left option number two, a plan she truly wasn't looking forward to.

Cauterization.

A small flame could seal the wound, but most people couldn't resist the pain long enough to keep it where it needed to be. Ideally, a second party would work on sealing the wound while a third would attempt to keep the affected body part still. Alternatively, a thin piece of metal that could be heated up would potentially work. Unfortunately, the screwdriver was too small and Gambol Shroud was far too big. There was a third option, possibly the best in terms of effectiveness, but also easily the worst in regards to the pain it would cause. Blake grimly scoffed at the thought as she looked over her prepared items again. Burned was burned. No matter how she did this, the result would be quite painful.

Blake had helped treat an injured White Fang member in such a fashion once before. The technique she learned was apparently used in wartime when proper supplies and instruments were not handy. A small amount of gunpowder would be poured directly on the surface of a wound before being ignited with a flame. It would burn hot enough to seal even a deep wound while at the same time fizzing out quickly. However, unlike a surface cauterization the burn tissue wouldn't be at just the surface. If too much gunpowder was used, then this had the potential to cause severe permanent damage. Blake had seen the technique used three times on two separate occasions . The first two had been together. Victim number one had no issues aside from the nasty scar it left. His partner however wound up losing the use of their arm. As for the second incident, Blake didn't even want to think about it. She had told the White Fang member to wait while she prepared the gunpowder, but while she was out of the room the man had decided to take matters into his own hands. He had assumed that Fire Dust would work even better. Instead, he had only succeeded in killing himself and setting that particular White Fang hideout ablaze.

With a sigh, Blake stopped thinking about those moments. If she didn't push them out of her mind, then she was going to lose her nerve. Of course, on the flipside she would potentially bleed to death if she didn't do this, so either way her mind was already made up. Carefully grabbing the paper that contained the gunpowder, Blake had folded it slightly and poured it over the oozing wound. She winced as the substance made contact. It had stung a bit more than she anticipated, but she knew this was merely the precursor to what was likely to be the most painful experience of her life. Rather than draw this out, Blake crumpled up the paper, threw it aside, then in one swift motion she had grabbed the lighter, ignited the flame and touched it to her wound.

In her mind, she knew it couldn't have been more than a few seconds, but those seconds felt like an eternity. As soon as the flame made contact, Blake was greeted with the sickening smell of her skin burning for the second time that week. The pain quickly forced Blake to fall on her knees as she yelled out. At that moment, more than anything else, she wished her team was there.

For several seconds, Blake just remained on the floor and took deep breaths. Despite the chill of fall being in the air, she was pouring sweat. After a few moments, Blake tested the movement of her shoulder and arm. While doing so was quite painful, she quickly noted that she hadn't botched her rather ill-advised operation. After a few more seconds, Blake had worked up the courage to look at her shoulder. Despite being somewhat nasty looking, overall the area that was affected was fairly small. Things could have been much worse.

Suddenly, almost as if it was on cue, Blake's attention was drawn towards the center of the warehouse as the sound of broken glass assaulted her ears. She was instantly on the defensive and had both parts of Gambol Shroud in her hands as several White Fang members had dropped in from the skylight. At least three had landed on the catwalks surrounding her on the upper level while more had landed on the main floor of the warehouse. Worse yet, she could see more reinforcements waiting up on the roof. Blake wasn't sure how they found her, but it was quickly becoming clear that she wasn't leaving without a fight. Even worse, she suddenly had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

 _I'm not going to be leaving on my own terms.  
_

* * *

 **AN: Alternate chapter name: Enigma isn't dead!**

 **It's been a rather busy couple of months for me. Here's a tip: if you like free time, then a job in retail during the holiday season isn't for you! What little time I've had has mainly been used for family and friends. Writing had to take a backseat for a bit. Been slowly putting this one together since late October. Some sections got rewritten, others got moved to later, and so on. Point is, I haven't been 100% idle, but due to the circumstances of timing this did take much longer than usually. Hopefully, now that the holidays are behind us, I can move back to a more normal update schedule.**

 **With that said, there is something to address: Volume 4.**

 **In the time since our last chapter, the official Volume 4 is in full swing. As of the day of this chapter being posted (1/1/17), we've just seen the seventh episode air. Much has happened in the world of Remnant since I last put pen to paper. Or is it text to screen? Meh, semantics!**

 **As noted last time, this is now officially marked as an AU V4. There are a few things I wish to address however regarding canon:**

 **Yang: Well, as I'm sure folks are aware, she's got her arm! After the reveal of Ironwood and Mercury's cybernetics, I'm actually surprised that Yang's actually attaches on like mine as opposed to being a surgical implant. While we've yet to see the canon arm in a combat situation, I wouldn't be surprised if it winds up being similar to what I had in mind for the permanent replacement that I've hinted at. I assume we'll see Yang in action being the end of the volume, but before I reach the point in this story where Yang gets a replacement made for combat (seriously, we're already down to the last five episodes :-/). As a result, once you see it in canon, assume that's what I'm going with.**

 **Blake: Willing to bet many fanfiction writers cried out in despair once Blake's family and a bit more of her backstory were revealed XD**  
 **She's the go to character in RWBY fanfiction when it comes to being an orphan and having a tragic past. Blake having parents that are alive in canon essentially torpedoed the vast majority of fanfic backstories she has had over the years. In light of the new info, I'll work with canon where I can and adjust where I see fit. I hadn't made reference to her mother by name, so should it come up I'll be sticking with canon (Kali). Regarding pops, I guess I'm stuck with Darrah. Don't expect to see Ghira Belladonna appear in this story. Speaking of which...**

 **Darrah/Ghira/Papa Belladonna: Have you seen what the canon version of this guy looks like? Don't answer that, you're a RWBY fan, it's rhetorical. Of course you have!**  
 **I didn't nail the appearance 100%, but THAT is what I had in mind for Darrah! Yeah, I know. He doesn't have cat ears. His hair is also shorter than what I had in mind. Don't know if I'd call the beard long, but that thing is thick. He's also got the imposing size. All in all, picture Ghira with long hair and add cat ears and you've got the concept I had in mind for Darrah.**

 **As far as other things within canon go, I'm making adjustments as needed. This is mainly due to the fact that I like to use the established canon as a basis, then go from there with my own spin on things. At its core, this is still an AU story. There are some ideas and plans I've had for months now. To break away from them would require a reworking of key plot points that I wish to hit later. I cannot name anyone due to spoilers, but it's going to become apparent that some of the characters I planned on using are NOT going to match up to how they are portrayed within canon. At most, this is what I'll say: it's a fairly short list of characters introduced prior to this volume that had minimal backstory. Pretty sure that in itself is a HUGE spoiler as to who I'm talking about. Consider this the fair warning on the matter. I have a strong feeling there are going to be at least a couple people shouting "THAT'S NOT CANON!" in regards to this character once he or she shows up.**

 **Seriously, if you actually attempt that particular complaint then I'm just going to point to my battle scarred version of Blake that wears an eyepatch :P**

 **One final note: while the violence level isn't quite there yet, I am going to bump this up to an M rating. Like with the canon series, things are going to get much more serious and a bit darker as time goes on.**

 **As always, be sure to add the story to your favorites if you haven't done so already. Otherwise, how are you going to know when the new chapters are posted? ^_~**


	26. Author's Note (June 1st)

Ok, it's been awhile. Feeling a need to touch base with the fans and followers of this story.

First and foremost, it's not abandoned. The next chapter is mostly written. However, it has had to take a backseat. I know that five months is quite some time to wait, but events have been outside my power. I'm generally a private person. I normally keep my offline and online lives seperate. Yet, I do feel an explanation is in order.

Broken World was last updated on New Year's Day. Approximately two weeks following that, my mother had to be rushed to the emergency room. She hadn't been feeling week for a few days and early one morning she started to spit up blood. Long story short: lung cancer. Caught very early, extremely treatable, but the surgery itself was quite invasive. It put her in bed for some time, and for several weeks she needed help getting around the house.

Wish I could say that was the end of it. It wasn't. About a month ago, she started getting bad headaches and had trouble sleeping. Didn't think anything of it at first as she has a history of migraines and insomnia. However, a blackout episode was enough to get me and my father to push her back in for tests. Worst fears confirmed: cancer was back and had spread to the brain.

Wasn't looking great for a few weeks. There was brain swelling that needed to be taken care of before the doctors could proceed on this one. During that time, she had become highly forgetful and extremely confused. To say the last few weeks have been hard would be a massive understatement.

She went in two days ago for a proceedure. The swelling came down enough to operate and a Gamma Knife treatment was performed. Overall, call us cautiously optimistic. Complications are rare, and the treatment itself carries about a 90% success rate. Barring any other issues, I'm hoping we're good now.

Anyway, the story will proceed, but it might be at more of a snail's pace for the foreseeable future. I'll be finishing up Chapter 21 when I can, following that, I don't want to promise too much. While I'm not attending RTX, I'm thinking a regular update schedule will be achievable following RTX 2017. I want to make sure everything is fine on my end first. While I've got the general flow of several story arcs already planned, putting it to paper isn't easy, nor is it a priority with so much happening right now. Plus, if anything, news coming out of RTX will give me time to possibly realign some potential inconsistencies that have cropped up since the start of Volume 4. While this is an AU, I do like to stick to canon when I can, and I do like to avoid going against established facts and rules. That being said, as I have previously stated, there is at least one character showing up in the very near future that is going to be different from canon. Some other characters might not show up or exist at all. Any attempt to deviate from my own plan will result in a total rewrite that likely won't line up with the story I wish to tell. Due to the long wait, I'll at least give you guys a bone:

He/she is going to be far more likable than the canon version. A new backstory will be explained as time goes on, one that is equal parts tragic and sad with the possibility of a normal life long gone. Some elements of the canon backstory will remain as they can be woven in without issue. Semblance is passive, and operates on two levels. At it's basic levels, this character is going to be EXTREMELY gifted in combat. The more extreme end of the spectrum is uncontrollable, and can actually relate to a canon Semblance in some ways. However, any attempt to act on imfomation gained/revealed from it can have extreme consequences, the results of which being felt at the end of Volume 3. Additional factors and events in their backstory will potentially make this character a danger to friend and foe alike if the situation takes a turn for the worse.

Despite my use of he/she, I think if you guys can't figure it out after that, then you're the type of person that would treat "Jesus dies at the end of The Passion" as a massive spoiler XD

Going to leave it here for now. Hopefully, the second half of 2017 isn't going to be the disaster that the first half was. One last thing: if you haven't checked it out, join RWBY Amino. It's become a pretty good social media hub for all things RWBY. Broken World has been reposted there with minor edits for language/content as it is a bit of a more PG/kid friendly place. Moving forward, will get new chapters first and uncensored, Amino will follow a week later with any changes I may need to make to avoid moderation on the platform.

I'll catch you guys later. With luck, the next update won't be a downer.

-E


	27. Hard Truth

Chapter 21  
"Hard Truth"

* * *

Village of Patch, the Xiao Long home (Present day, 195 days after FoB)

* * *

At this point, Blake stopped reciting her tale to Yang. It wasn't the first time over the last hour or so that she had done so. Yang knew having to remember and retell the horrors of the last several months must not have been easy. Blake hadn't told her how many White Fang members had shown up, but Yang knew exactly how many they would use. Five, Forty, the numbers didn't matter. Adam would have thrown everything he had at Blake. The intent behind such a show of force was extremely clear.

Blake was supposed to die that night.

Had they succeeded, Yang had no doubt there would have been zero trace. While it had not come to pass, deep down, she feared what such an outcome would have done to her. Sure, Yang had eventually come out of her shell, but up until the reunion there was a piece of her that remained bitter and resentful. For the longest time, she felt betrayed. Many variations of a reunion played in her imagination for months, yet they all came down to one simple question.

Why?

With the knowledge of the events slowly unfolding, other questions now entered Yang's mind. Would she have eventually tried to find out what happened? Would she have actually cared? Would she have had closure, or would the search for answers simply be littered with dead ends and speculation? What if she had discovered enough of the truth? How would Yang have reacted had she known that Blake was fighting for her life only to fail? Would she have gone on her own suicide mission, or would any potential fear over her last encounter with Adam keep her on a small island off the coast of Vale?

Suddenly, Yang became aware of just how much she was dwelling on this. Why was she obsessing over asking herself so many questions? Ruby and Weiss were also missing. Why was she so laser focused on Blake?

 _Simple, you know where Weiss is, and you've got a general idea where Ruby could be._

Was it really that simple? There was a part of Yang that felt unsure. This was only a fraction of Blake's story. Injuries aside, she was alive. Yet, it was like reading the last page of a book before properly starting it. Yang knew the outcome, but as the tale went on, every instance of danger put her on edge. Sure, Weiss was most likely safe in a house more expensive than the entire island of Patch, but Ruby was actually out in the wilderness of Anima. It had been a little over a month since Ruby left with Jaune and the others. Not a day had gone by without Yang feeling worried, but for some reason the situation felt very different.

"Hey, you ok?"

Blake voice snapped Yang away from her thoughts. Despite her own feelings over these events, Blake couldn't keep herself from poking fun at Yang once she saw her spacing out. "I know it's a long drawn out story, but you could at least pretend to be interested over a tale of my impending doom." Yang's chuckle did manage to draw a smile from Blake. She wasn't going to pry, but despite hiding it well, she knew Yang must have been worried sick about Ruby. She may have wanted to know the truth of what happened, but the worst aspects of her story likely weren't doing Yang any favors in regards to thoughts of her younger sister.

 _I haven't even told Yang about the research facility yet._

As bad as this part of the story was, it still wasn't the worst part of everything. Just thinking about it again made Blake instinctively touch her eyepatch. That was where yet another encounter with Adam went poorly for the young faunus. However, her injuries weren't the memories that troubled her the most. It was the knowledge of the things the White Fang had started to do in an extremely misguided quest.

Now it was Yang's turn to bring Blake away from what she was thinking about. "Ok, so the White Fang tracked you down to the warehouse. That part is easy to understand." Blake braced herself for the question that was inevitably coming. It was the one she really didn't want to answer. She wasn't sure how Yang was going to react, but at this point, Blake wasn't going to be able to dance around it. The easy thing to do would have been to keep this part of the story as brief as possible. However, Yang deserved answers after everything she had been through, even if they weren't easy to hear. Still, there was a part of Blake really not looking forward to this as the statement and unspoken question came forth.

"What I don't understand is how you managed to get out of there alive."

Hearing those words come from Yang stung. Blake knew it wasn't a jab at her skills, but she also knew that anyone would be able to clearly see that there just wasn't any way she could have gotten away on her own. With a sorrowful smirk, Blake said, "Should I just skip to the part where half the warehouse blew up?" In any other situation, the look of wide-eyed shock on Yang's face would have amused Blake, but the seriousness of things was what made everything so somber.

WIth a sigh, Blake stood up and took a few steps away from Yang before stopping. The two of them had been sitting for some time now. Blake told herself that she was just stretching, but part of her wondered if it was perhaps some subconscious thought that she might want to put some distance between her and Yang. Blake knew that Yang would never lay a hand on her out of anger, but her temper was something she didn't want to be on the receiving end of in the event that this next part somehow triggered her. Staring off into the woods, Blake said it as simply as she could.

"When I said they hunted me for almost six months, that much was true. But, it wasn't just as simple and clear cut as me being chased. I actively seeked out the White Fang almost as much as they were looking for me, mainly because I was looking for Adam. I managed to run interference on some of their plans, but there were at least several times where things hadn't gone entirely the way I intended. Those were the instances that generally led to some of my worst injuries. Somehow, I always found a way to survive, but to say the next several days following a botched attack were rough would be one of the biggest understatements."

Blake knew that explanation didn't directly answer for the warehouse incident, but it was necessary to help explain what came next. As she turned around, Blake said, "I know that I've always had issues with running away from problems, but there's another thing I'm good at." Blake's remaining eye narrowed a bit as she said it.

"I survive."

As her partner explained this, Yang was simply casting her gaze to the ground. Several moments passed before she spoke. The first words from her mouth were simple. "This whole time." Yang started to look back up towards Blake. The faunus felt slightly uneasy and expected to see that familiar flash of red as Yang made eye contact with her. Instead, she saw Yang's normal shade of purple which was accompanied by one of the most painful things she had ever heard Yang say.

"You could have walked away and came back at any time."

In reality, it perhaps wasn't the worst thing Yang could have said, but the meaning being it was clear. Blake saw the tears in Yang's eyes as she got up and started to walk towards her. She braced herself for the inevitable stream of anger that would be coming forth, but was instead taken aback when Yang once again pulled her into a hug.

"You didn't have to do this to yourself! You could have just come home at any time!"

Home?

The idea of home was a very strange concept Blake. Once she had joined the White Fang in their more questionable pursuits, Blake no longer had a home to go to. For her, Beacon was the first time in years she was able to sleep in the same bed each night. Even now, the thought of remaining in one place felt odd. Yet, the thing that confused Blake the most at the moment was the fact that Yang was once again not blaming her for something.

"You're not angry?"

Yang managed to pull herself together before looking at Blake. While she did wear a serious expression, it was one devoid of anger. "Well, even just a few weeks ago, it may have been a different story. I'm not angry, but I am disappointed. Everything you've been through was avoidable, yet you didn't stop. Why do this to yourself?" As Yang broke her embrace, Blake pointed to her arm and said, "You said it yourself. You'd have given up your arm a hundred times for me. Why wouldn't I do the same for you?"

Yang raised an eyebrow at that statement. Sure, she knew that Adam had made threats against Team RWBY, but realistically, how could he have managed to find them? If anything, Weiss would have been in the most trouble if Atlas wasn't practically a fortress in its own right. Ruby could have been anywhere on Sanus or Anima. As for Yang, if Adam even attempted to hitch a ride to Patch by any normal means, it wouldn't have gone unnoticed. Yang was having trouble trying to comprehend what Blake was saying. It took a very unexpected question from Blake to get her to realize Adam's mindset and why her friend had been so focused on going after him.

"Tell me something Yang. How many people died in White Fang attacks on Vale in the last six months?"

At first, it was a highly confusing question. One could argue that the White Fang had directly attacked Beacon and not Vale. However, Beacon itself was a major symbol of the kingdom. There were smaller towns and villages just outside the kingdom that had issues with the White Fang in the past, yet no one would consider them a part of Vale despite sitting in areas that would have been controled by the kingdom before the Great War. The incident with the train was really the only thing that came to mind, yet it was outside the timeframe Blake asked about, plus the general public saw that as more of an incident with Torchwick since his capture was all over the news. The exact meaning of Blake's question slowly started to dawn on Yang.

"Not counting the incident with Roman, there hasn't been a direct attack on Vale by the White Fang."

Yang's expression turned to one of shock as the realization hit her. She hadn't been present for any conversations that Adam had with Blake, but the words were very fresh in her mind from what Blake had told her so far. If you couldn't locate a target, then the answer was simple: launch a wide scale attack. You'd either draw the target out, or get lucky and kill them.

 _I will make it my mission to destroy everything you care about._

As she put things together in her mind, Yang was beginning to see just was Blake was saying, as well as what she had done. Vale hadn't been attacked because Blake was out there putting her life and body on the line day after day. Yang doubted she was the sole reason for the lack of attacks, but there wasn't any doubt in her mind that Blake had been a major factor. Whatever it was she was doing, it was causing enough issues to keep the Fang at bay. She still wished that Blake would have at least made her presence known, but Yang knew it was Blake's way of keeping them all safe while they recovered from the battle at Beacon. Yang didn't exactly agree with it, but she knew what Blake was trying to accomplish. If she had no distractions or attachments on the battlefield, then Adam couldn't use any of them as leverage against Blake. Despite all that, one thing kept coming up, something that seemed to be a common factor.

Blake couldn't have escaped alone, and she definitely didn't go into a battle with the White Fang alone.

Blake seemed to sense where Yang's thoughts were heading. "I think I know exactly what you're thinking." She sat down in the grass and motioned for Yang to do the same. As she did so, Blake continued. "'There is absolutely no way that Blake Belladonna managed to escape certain death, stay on the run for six months, and completely mess up all of the White Fang's plans without help.'" Yang chuckled and asked jokingly, "You also read minds now?" However, the serious expression that Blake wore said more than words ever could. Yang did what she could to prepare herself for what was coming next.

"I'm not going to like this answer, am I? Who helped you?"

Blake let out a sigh since she knew there really wasn't a great way to approach the next topic. Yang's mindset was more along the lines of who hadn't told her the truth of Blake's whereabouts. Obviously, it wasn't going to be Weiss, Ruby, or the survivors of Team JNPR. For a moment, Yang wondered if it was Sun. She hadn't seen him in months. Last she heard, his team had ignored the call to return to Haven feeling that Vale was far more in need of them. There were plenty of other names that crossed Yang's mind in the span of a few seconds, but Blake's answer had been the last one she expected to hear.

"It was Raven."

* * *

 **AN: He's back...**

 **I'm so sorry that this took so long. If you've read my author's note that I posted on June 1st, then you already know the situation. I really don't want to rehash that. Everything seems to be fine for now, so we'll just leave it at that.**

 **Forgive me if the chapter does seem weak or uneven. I had started writing it in February. My writing sessions on this one had major gaps. Considering the circumstances, it's to be expected. While I do feel this could have possibly used some polish, I also didn't want to delay this much longer.**

 **Raven: Well, she's been hinted at some points in the notes. There was a part of me that toyed with not blatantly saying it, but after such a long wait I felt that dropping her name in would be a very impactful cliffhanger. Plus, as far as my plans and outline go, if I hadn't mentioned it, then it was likely that an appearance by Raven might seem to be out of left field. Anyway, it's been said before, but it will need to be said again:**

 **THIS IS NOT GOING TO BE A CANON RAVEN!**

 **Despite whatever rewrites this story has had, Raven has always been a constant factor in the overall flow of it's main arc. Problem is, Volume 2 didn't give people much to work with, and Volume 3 didn't include her at all. Any fanfics that have used her have varied wildly in terms of backstory, motivations and personality. I've been able to adjust the fic in some ways as I like to use canon as a basis to work from. Some upcoming arcs had a very basic framework that actually works very well with altered versions of the canon events. However, despite what little we still know about her, a 100% canon Raven is something that can never work with this fanfic. From the moment she actually appears, remind yourself of the fact that this is a fanfic and that it's been AU for some time now, otherwise we'll all be here all day long pointing out how Raven is "wrong" XD**

 **On a different note, I do have other projects that are slowly being worked on. Moving forward, this won't be my only fic. No actual chapters yet, just outlines. The two main ones in the pipeline are RWBY related. One is comedy based. Got an outline to work with and the blessing of the original author behind the initial idea back in November. Just haven't worked on it for various reasons. Not saying what it is yet, but I will plug the story and author that inspired my idea:**

 **Go read Cards Against Remnant by RexHeller ^_~**

 **My other project is bound to be a doozy. It's a RWBY crossover, but the issue is that both stories have so many characters that I really need to pick and choose who's in and who's out. On the one hand, Team RWBY will be a must. On the other hand, the other story has at least three characters that will be required. Granted, that's only seven "main" characters, not any larger than what I'll be working with later in Broken World, but both series do have a rather large ensemble cast. And that's all before how I'm going to factor in Semblances, weapons from the other series, how exactly to implement everyone, ect. The real pain is getting the RWBY cast to fit in the other world, while at the same time making the characters crossing over fit into RWBY...**

 **Yay...vague descriptions!**

 **As this being said, both are going to be side projects. Broken World is still the main focus here, despite the fact that the crossover could very easily be a main project in it's own right. What helps is that the series being crossed over has a well established timeline of events, the basis of which can be adapted. The problem will of course be altering things to fit a new world and chain of events. In any case, once either project gets off the ground, I think I could safely say we'll have 3-6 chapters of Broken World for every chapter of one of the others.**

 **Anyway, that'll do it for now. More to come later in what I seriously hope is far less than six months :P**


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